Yugioh 5D's: Scrap Iron Story
by AkashicStorm
Summary: Michael Aker, a duelist from Satellite, gets dragged into a battle between two conflicting forces when trying to make good on a 10 year old promise. Now revised to (hopefully) contain fewer errors!
1. Chapter 1:  Tremendous Fire

The evening was just starting in Satellite. Darkness had just fallen, and a two-story building surrounded by a cluster of other buildings, most which had fallen into a state of disrepair, began teeming with life. Michael Aker sat in a window sill on the second floor. He was wearing blue jeans with a white long-sleeved shirt and a brown vest. He had a yellow criminal mark that travelled in a straight line from just below his eye to just above his chin. A person entered the room he was in and informed that Securities had been sighted not too far away.

He nodded and replied that he knew. He'd known they were coming long before they actually arrived. He could see the flashes of red across the buildings further down the road that their sirens gave off. He wasn't worried though. Everyone here could out duel most of the standard Sector Security. Most of their decks were composed of the same cards, with a few tweaks where the Officers 'personalized' them. Just take precautions against the standard strategy and you could do fine. He had taken those precautions, and that was why he wasn't worried even when Sector Security formed a line in front of the building and dismounted from their Duel Runners.

This wasn't an uncommon sight here. This building was more or less used to strip Duel Runners, most of which had been stolen, for their parts. There was a large garage at the back where Michael kept his own Duel Runner. He stayed here so he didn't have to worry about it getting stolen. Of course Security would come here, where the citizens actually broke the law instead of terrorizing the regular citizens like they were known to do. It was said they could track the marks, so it made sense they ended up here as more or less everyone in the building had one, Michael included. It wasn't a difficult task to get the Security to move along however, a simple bribe or defeating them in a duel would usually suffice.

"You're all under arrest!" One of the Officers shouted.

"Okay then, come and get us!" A voice laughed from the first floor window. Several other voices joined in the laughing and jeering. The Security stood stone faced, unfazed by the laughter. Michael found this odd; usually they could get a rise out of at least one of them.

"Aww what's the matter, no sense of humor?" Another voice said. The owner of the voice waltzed out of the building and stood confidently in front of the Security. Michael recognized this person. His name was Rory. He had shaggy black hair that ended just above his shoulders and his face was dotted with patches of stubble. He was wearing a long, light brown coat and black pants. A criminal mark extended from just above his eyebrow and curled down towards his nose.

"Go get 'em, Rory!" Another voice cried.

"Will do!" Rory grinned, turning back to the building and giving it a thumbs up. As the black-haired duelist turned to look at the Security Officers, his smile faded. "Hey… I don't recognize any of you guys." Rory said.

"Huh?"

"New guys?"

Looking down at them, Michael had to agree. Even with the helmets covering their eyes, he couldn't recognize any of them. If he squinted, he could barely make out some of their faces. None of them were familiar, but then again, he didn't commit every Officer's face to memory. The building came alive with chatter over who these new Officers could have been. Replacements? New trainees?

"New director." A new voice boomed. The line of Security Officers broke open to allow a large man, easily over six-foot and built like an ox to pass. Even from here, Michael could see a beard starting to grown on the man's chin.

"And you are?" Rory asked.

"Everest Ashur, head of the Sector Security in Satellite." The man said clearly and confidently. Even though he was a good deal away from the man Michael felt intimidated.

"So where are all my buddies?" Rory asked, a smile playing on his lips.

"Reassigned, or sent to the Facility due to their incompetence." Everest stated.

"…What? The Facility?" Rory said. His smile faded, replaced by a frown.

"Repeated failures have tarnished the good name of Sector Security. They were punished for losing to trash like you and allowing you to do as you please. But no more." Everest said.

"Alright then," Rory started "Now that we know what we're up against, how about we have a duel? I win, and you guys skedaddle and give us a head start. You win and I'll turn myself in here and now."

"Negative. We know you're running an illegal business in that building. Duelling you would just be a waste of time." Everest responded.

"Nervous? Maybe you're all bluster and you don't have the skills to pay the bills." Rory said, chuckling softly.

"…Very well!" Everest boomed. "I accept your challenge."

Michael watched all of this from his window, a sense of dread starting to set in. He didn't want Rory to duel. He knew it would end badly. The way the Officer gave in so easily to Rory's taunting... it just didn't seem right. But at the same time, he was filled with a sense of curiosity. He wanted to know what he would be up against. He bit his lower lip and watched the scene unfold.

"Wonderful!" Rory grinned, the black-haired duelist activating his duel disk. Everest did the same.

"Duel!" They shouted in unison.

**[Rory: 8000 / Everest: 8000]**

"Since you challenged me, I will begin. Draw!" Everest declared, drawing a single card from his deck. The man smirked. "I summon Laval Miller in Attack Mode!"

A creature that appeared to be made of orange stone wearing tattered clothing appeared in front of Everest. [ATK: 300]

"That ends my turn." Everest finished.

Even with a floor separating them Michael could hear the murmurs of the others below. Summoning a monster with 300 attack in attack position? Not even setting a card to protect it? Was he insane?

"I draw. I summon Scrap Beast in Attack Mode!" Rory said.

A dog-like creature made out of various odds-and-ends machine parts appeared in front of Rory and howled loudly. [ATK: 1600]

"Scrap Beast, attack Laval Miller!" Rory declared.

The mechanical beast charged forward and sank its teeth into the shoulder of the orange creature, causing it to explode.

**[Rory: 8000 / Everest: 6700]**

"When Laval Miller is destroyed, I can send two Laval cards from my deck to the graveyard." Everest explained as he did exactly that. Michael had never seen or played against Lavals before. He had no idea what to expect from this man.

"I set one card face-down and end my turn." Rory finished.

"Draw," Everest started "I summon a second Laval Miller in Attack Mode!"

An orange creature identical to the one who was destroyed mere moments ago appeared. [ATK: 300]

"Next, I set one card face-down and end- …No, scratch that. I don't end my turn. Rather, I'll attack your Scrap Beast!" Everest announced.

An uproar shot through the people in the building. What was this guy doing? Was he crazy?

The orange creature ran forward, but a single slash from Scrap Beast's claws destroyed it.

**[Rory: 8000 / Everest: 5400]**

"I'll use Laval Miller's effect to send two Laval cards from my deck to the graveyard, and then I'll end my turn." Everest said.

"You do know the object of the game is to reduce your opponents' life points to zero, right?" Rory laughed. Everest gave no response. "I tribute Scrap Beast to summon Scrap Golem!" The black-haired duelist said.

Scrap Beast was replaced by a larger creature whose body was a refrigerator and whose head was a microwave. The arms were composed of tubing, one which ended in a propeller and the other which ended in a hammer. [ATK: 2300]

"Now, Scrap Golem's effect activates! Once per turn, I can special summon one Level 4 or lower Scrap monster to either side of the field. I revive Scrap Beast!" Rory grinned.

Scrap Beast reappeared next to Scrap Golem, growling at the unprotected Everest.

"Now, Scrap Beast! Attack him directly!" Rory commanded.

The beast lunged forward and slashed Everest across the chest with its claw. The mountain of a man that was his opponent didn't even flinch.

**[Rory: 8000 / Everest: 3800]**

"Next, Scrap Golem attacks!" The Scrap duelist grinned.

The makeshift monster rolled forward and brought its hammer arm down on Everest. Again, the man didn't flinch.

**[Rory: 8000 / Everest: 1500]**

"Now, during my Main Phase 2, I tune my level four Scrap Beast with my level five Scrap Golem!" Rory declared, a grin spreading over his face. Scrap Beast and Scrap Golem rose up into the air, Scrap Beast transforming into four green rings which surrounded Scrap Golem. The Golem was reduced to a wire-frame version of itself, and then became 5 white stars.

"Among the rubble lies infinite potential! Once discarded, rise again! Synchro Summon! Howl, Scrap Twin Dragon!" Rory chanted.

The rings and stars disappeared in a bright flash of light. A brown mechanical dragon with two heads appeared, its body composed of various machine parts. Its blue eyes lit up and both heads screeched loudly. [ATK: 3000]

"You don't even have enough cards for me to use Scrap Twin Dragons effect… what a shame." Rory sighed. "I end my turn."

"Draw." Everest said. Michael could swear he could see the man smirking. But he was so far behind; Michael didn't see how he could recover. Even if Everest made a comeback and destroyed Scrap Twin Dragon, its effect would allow Rory to summon one Scrap monster from his graveyard. Knowing Rory, he'd bring back Scrap Golem and Everest would end up right back where he started.

"Well?" Rory asked. Everest had simply been staring at the card he drew for a few the past few moments.

"Boy. I will show you the true power of Sector Security. This is the last turn." Everest said, laughing triumphantly.

"You have 1500 life points and no monsters, where as I have 8000 life points and a 3000 attack point monster. If you can win this turn, I'll tip my hat to your magnificence." Rory chuckled.

"Very well! I'll start with the Field Spell Molten Destruction!" Everest announced. A huge volcano with lava running down the sides appeared in the background, ash and sparks slowly falling over the battlefield. "All Fire monsters gain 500 attack, but lose 400 defense. Next, with three different Laval monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon Laval Burner from my hand!" Everest said.

A large creature made out of orange rock appeared. Its two large fists were engulfed in flames and it had flowing oranges hair down its back, with two strands falling down the sides of his face. [ATK: 2100 - 2600]

"Then, I summon Laval Warrior!"

Another creature built from the same orange rock as the others appeared, two steel plates on his shoulders. The creatures' arms were red and the weapons it wielded were two burning axes. [ATK: 1800 - 2300]

"Wonderful, maybe if you'd done that last turn you could've actually damaged me." Rory snickered.

"I'm not done. I activate the spell card Rekindling! I can summon as many Fire monsters from graveyard with 200 defense as possible! Come forth, Tender of the Laval Volcano! Laval Forest Sprite!" Everest shouted.

A tanned woman with a steel tiara and long orange hair appeared. [ATK: 100 - 600] Next to her, another tanned woman with a sleeveless black shirt and a black hood with long red hair appeared. [ATK: 300 - 800]

"None of them are strong enough." Rory said.

"Rory! They're tuners! Watch out!" A voice from inside the building shouted.

"I tune my level one Tender of the Laval Volcano with my level four Laval Warrior!" Everest declared.

Tender of the Laval Volcano turned into a single green ring and Laval Warrior turned into four bright stars. The rings and stars flew into the background above the volcano, hovering over the mouth.

"Warrior of the raging inferno, come forth and cut down every enemy who stands before you! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Laval Dual Slasher!" Everest shouted.

The volcano in the background erupted, engulfing the rings and stars in lava. A ball of molten rock fell right in front of Everest. The only reaction the man gave was a slight smirk. It became clear very quickly that this was no rock, as it stood up revealing itself to be a bipedal creature. The monster was composed of the same orange rock as the others, but it had blue rocks along the sides of its torso, and down its shoulders and arms. At its elbows, two long blades extended that burned red at the ends. [ATK: 2400 - 2900]

"You fell just a tad short in terms of power." Rory commented.

"I still have two monsters left. Now, I tune my level two Laval Forest Sprite with my level five Laval Burner!" Everest declared.

The same process happened between these two monsters as the others. The two green rings and five stars hovered above the mouth of the volcano, waiting.

"Beast of rock and flame, emerge from the depths of the earth and incinerate everything in your path! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Laval Stennon!" Everest roared.

The volcano erupted and another creature appeared on Everest's field. This one was huge, composed of blue and white rock with one arm ending in a cannon. It let out a menacing growl as it stared down Scrap Twin Dragon. [ATK: 2700 - 3200]

"3200 attack?" Rory shouted in disbelief.

"It gets worse." Everest chuckled. An image of Laval Forest Sprite appeared behind the two Laval Synchros.

"What is this?" Rory mumbled.

"When Laval Forest Sprite is sent from the field to the graveyard, all Laval monsters I control gain 200 attack for each Laval monster in my graveyard until the End Phase." Everest said. He removed cards from his graveyard and fanned them out so Rory could count them. "Eight Laval monsters reside in my graveyard. Therefore, Slasher and Stennon each gain 1600 attack points!" Everest said, returning the cards to his graveyard.

The image of Laval Forest Sprite raised its arms, seven other creatures appearing behind it. All of them hovered for a moment before their forms became consumed by flames which then flew towards Dual Slasher and Stennon, increasing their power. [ATK: 2900 - 4500] [ATK: 3200 - 4800]

"4500 and… 4800?" Rory gasped.

"Stennon! Destroy Scrap Twin Dragon!" Everest ordered. The beast roared in compliance, raising its arm and firing a stream of super-heated lava towards Scrap Twin Dragon.

"Mirror Force!" Rory shouted, a shimmering wall appearing in front of his monster.

"Royal Decree!" Everest countered.

"What?" Rory shouted as the wall in front of his monster shattered. The blast hit Scrap Twin Dragon and the beast screamed out in pain as it slowly melted away.

**[Rory: 6200 / Everest: 1500]**

"When Scrap Twin Dragon is destroyed by an opponent's card, I can special summon one non-Synchro Scrap monster from my graveyard. I summon Scrap Golem in defense mode!" Rory declared.

The refrigerator golem appeared, then crossed its arms over its chest and turned blue. [DEF: 1400]

"I should let you know, Laval Dual Slasher has a special ability. If there are two or more Laval monsters in my graveyard, if attacks a defense position monster he can attack again." Everest smirked.

"I'll still make it through the turn though. It looks like you were wrong." Rory said.

"Oh no. When I said this was the final turn, I meant what I said. Laval Dual Slasher has a second effect. If there are three or more Laval monsters in my graveyard, he inflicts piercing damage!" Everest said.

"No…" The color drained from Rory's face.

"Go, Dual Slasher! End this duel!" Everest commanded.

Michael left at this point. He ran downstairs. He wasn't there to see Laval Dual Slasher cut through Scrap Golem, then deliver a second blow to Rory that depleted his friends' life points to 0. He was glad he wasn't there to see his friend fall to his knees as Security approached him, handcuffs in hand. No, he ran into the storage area at the back.

His Duel Runner was there, a grey and blue Gamma frame model. As he hoped on and started it up, he could see about eight other people had a similar idea. Someone opened the large door at the back. Michael sped through the door and into the night just as he could hear some of his friends above shout the word "Duel!"

* * *

><p>AN: Well, that's the first chapter out of the way. I'll admit, this story will probably end up being a little slow in terms of development but hopefully you can find some enjoyment in it anyway. I probably won't be using any characters from the actual series since I don't feel I can write well enough to properly represent their established character. There will be some custom cards in this, and I'll try and stick as true to actual game as I can. That's about all I had to say, so I'll just wish you all a nice day and be on my way.


	2. Chapter 2: Electric Virus

A quick glance behind him revealed that about eight or nine others were following him. He had no time to worry about them though. The sound of sirens was starting up again; a group of officers probably being dispatched to make sure people like him didn't get away. Sure enough, the familiar look Security Duel Runners appeared behind them, sirens wailing in hot pursuit.

Michael was having a hard enough time focusing on driving without the sirens. He kept going over Rory's duel in his head. The new Security chief had been in control the whole time. When he attacked with his second Laval Miller and took damage because of it, it was to prevent the possibility of Scrap Twin Dragon using its effect so he'd have Royal Decree still on his field. Everest's cards had worked together on the level that frightened him.

He began to speed up, his body shaking. He had to get farther ahead of them. Just a bit farther, he needed to get out of sight. Then he passed a post with a yellow band tied around it. He continued to speed forward and when the Duel Runners behind him were little more than specks, Michael turned sharply into a building that had no door and grinded to a halt. He stopped his engine and pushed the Duel Runner up to the side of the wall and slumped down against said wall.

The yellow band around the post back there meant that there was a jamming device in the area. Some of the brighter people in Satellite found out how to jam the signals given off by the criminal marks and put those bands around the post so if people needed a 'safe zone' they knew where to go.

He watched silently from a hole in the wall as about seven Duel Runners bolted past the building. He cringed as he saw the eighth. It was one that they'd been building in the garage that they hadn't finished, and in all honesty Michael was impressed it made it that far. But the rider's luck had run out, and the Duel Runner refused to go an inch further. A red Duel Runner stopped a few feet behind the stopped Duel Runner as several Securities drove on in pursuit of the others, only one other stopping by the red Duel Runner.

"You're under arrest." The owner of the red Duel Runner boomed. Michael recognized that voice. Everest had personally come after those who ran after dealing with Rory.

"I-I'll duel you!" The rider of the broken Duel Runner shouted. The man had no hair, a small criminal mark on his cheek and was a wearing a black sleeveless shirt. Michael had a vague idea of who this was, the man was named Clark and he used a deck of Water monsters.

"Very well, you may take the first move." Everest said. Both players disengaged their duel disks from their Duel Runners and activated them.

"Duel!" They both shouted.

**[Clark: 8000 / Everest: 8000]**

"I activate the field spell, Umi!" Clark declared. A wave of water ran down the street, soaking the playing field in water that came up to Everest knees. "All my Fish, Sea Serpent, Thunder and Aqua-type monsters gain 200 attack and defense points, and all Pyro and Machine-types lose 200 attack and defense points! Then, I set one monster face-down and end my turn!" Clark said.

"Draw," Everest started "You lose."

"What was that?" Clark said, gritting his teeth. Michael had played Clark a few times and he knew of some of the cards in the bald man's deck. One was Mother Grizzly, which Clark could use to block up to four attacks by using it correctly.

"Montage Dragon's effect! I discard the level four Laval Warrior, the level seven Laval Judgment Lord and the level three Laval Lady of the Burning Lake to special summon it!" Everest said.

A three-headed purple dragon with purple wings appeared. Its stomach was beige and there was a white plate on each of their heads. The most notable part of the creature was its skinny arms and disproportionately large hands. [ATK: ? - 4200]

"Montage Dragon gains attack points equal to the levels of the monsters I sent to the graveyard to summon it. Their total level was 14, so Montage Dragons attack strength is 4200! Now, I activate Molten Transmission Field! I send two Laval monsters from my deck to the graveyard." Everest said, doing just that. "Next, I activate the effect of Laval Lady of the Burning Lake." The larger man grinned.

A tanned woman wearing something similar to a maids outfit appeared. Behind her, a creature made of orange rock appeared. The woman stood there for a few seconds before the creature behind her turned into a ball of flames which surrounded the woman. The woman charged forward and struck Clarks face-down card, revealing it to be Mother Grizzly before it was destroyed.

"No!" Clark cried. His only defense was gone. The possibility that Everest could actually give merit to his 'You lose' comment was becoming larger.

"When I have three or more different Laval monsters in my graveyard, I can remove Laval Lady of the Lake and one other Laval monster in my graveyard to destroy one set card my opponent controls. Moving on, I summon Laval Cannooneer!" Everest said.

A creature made of blue rock appeared. There were bands made out of grey rock on its arms, legs and shoulders and its right arm ended in a cannon. [ATK: 1600]

"Laval Cannoneer lets me special summon one of my removed from play Laval monsters. I'll bring back Laval Judgment Lord!" Everest grinned.

A large creature made of orange rock appeared. It had a red cape and red loin cloth, with grey rocks making up the armor on its head, shoulders, arms, torso and legs. [ATK: 2700]

"Now, all my monsters attack." Everest smirked.

The three monsters charged forward, their combined power equaling 8500. The match was over.

**[Clark: 0 / Everest: 8000]**

"You deal with him; I'm going after the others." Everest said, mounting his Duel Runner. The other Security officer gave a curt nod and removed a pair of handcuffs from his Duel Runner before advancing toward Clark, who put up no resistance.

In the span of 5 minutes Clark was handcuffed and hauled away. Michael simply sat on the cold floor of the building, his nerves only further rattled by Everest's duel. He had such a command over his deck. Michael had just begun to wonder how a duel between him and Everest would play out when a voice interrupted him.

"Well look who it is!"

"Of all the buildings I choose to hide it, it would be the one you're in." Michael said sarcastically. He turned his head to see a woman with standing at the bottom of a partially destroyed staircase.

The woman had shoulder length blonde hair and green eyes and was wearing a dark brown t-shirt with an orange long-sleeved shirt underneath it. Michael knew this girl only moderately well. Her name was Kali, he'd seen her around a few times and knew that she could hold her own in a duel despite her monsters not being very strong.

"Oh that hurts. I bet you knew I was staying here and you just wanted to see me." Kali teased.

"Of course. So how've you been?" Michael asked.

"Fine, yourself?" Kali replied.

"I've been…" Michael paused, the reminiscing of the fear he had felt mere moments ago seeing Everest duel. "…I've been better."

"Talk to me about." Kali said, sitting down on the stairs.

"I'd rather not." Michael replied rather coldly. He didn't want to admit that he was afraid of the new Security officers. Plus he knew she would never let it go if he told her.

"How about we have a duel? Maybe that will loosen you up a bit." Kali suggested. Michael mulled this thought over in his head for a little while before he nodded.

"Yeah sure." He said, activating his duel disk. Kali smiled and did the same, running across the floor of the building to stand opposite of him.

"Duel!" They shouted in unison.

**[Kali: 8000 / Michael: 8000]**

"I'll go first. Draw. I set one monster, that's all." Michael said.

"Come on, the whole point of this duel was to talk. That doesn't work if you're all business." Kali sighed, drawing a card. "I summon Wattpheasant." The blonde-haired girl said.

A blue and yellow electric bird appeared, peaking at the ground in front of it. [ATK: 1000]

"Then I use his effect to attack you directly!" Kali grinned.

The bird flew over Michael's set card and began to furiously peck him.

**[Kali: 8000 / Michael: 7000]**

"Since there's no other target I have to remove Wattpheasant from play until the End Phase. Main Phase 2, I set one card and end my turn so Pheasant returns." Kali finished.

"Draw. I flip summon R-Genex Accelerator." Michael said. The face-down card on his field flipped over to reveal a machine that very closely resembled a linear accelerator. [ATK: 1500]

"We were supposed to _talk_." Kali sighed.

"I don't really have anything to say. I summon Genex Undine. Then I use its effect to send one Water monster from my deck to the graveyard to add one Genex Controller to my hand." Michael explained.

A blue mechanical creature whose body was composed of several liquid filled canisters appeared. [ATK: 1200]

"Accelerator's effect activates. When a Genex monster is added from my deck to my hand, I can special summon it." Michael said.

R-Genex Accelerator began to spin, seconds later a small machine creature with a tiny body and large head that looked like an old radio with various colored bulbs along it appeared next to it. [ATK: 1400]

"I set one card and then I'll tune my level three Genex Undine and my level three Controller!" The brown-haired teenager said as Genex Controller turned into three green rings and Undine turned into three stars.

"The powers of darkness, of raging wings and storming seas all converge to bring forth a new entity! The power forged through teamwork! Synchro Summon, Genex Ally Triarm!" Michael chanted.

A new monster appeared, covered in black armor except for small area on its knees, elbows and across its waist. It had a black helmet with a blue visor and on its left arm was a three-pronged cannon. [ATK: 2400]

"I use Triarm's effect! Since I used a Water monster in its Synchro Summoning, I can discard one card to destroy one Spell or trap card on the field! I discard Genex Worker to destroy your set card!" Michael shouted.

"Poo." Kali sighed, her set Wattkeeper shattering before her eyes.

"Then, I attack Wattpheasant with R-Genex Accelerator!" Michael said.

The R-Genex monster began to spin, seconds later a laser fired from it and struck Wattpheasant in the chest, destroying it.

**[Kali: 7500 / Michael: 7000]**

"Then, Triarm attacks you directly!" Michael continued.

Triarm raised the cannon on its left arm and fired three volleys at Kali, each hitting its mark.

**[Kali: 5100 / Michael: 7000]**

"If you won't talk then I will. Draw." Kali said, starting her turn. "You should go see Derek, he told me he found a way to get to the city. I set one monster face-down and end my turn." Kali said.

"Go to the city? There's nothing for me there. Besides, Derek hates my guts. So why bother? " Michael asked, drawing one card. "Since I added a Genex monster to my hand, I can special summon the Genex Controller I just drew." Michael started. "Then, I activate the spell card Instant Fusion! For the low price of 1000 life points, I get a level five or lower fusion monster from my extra deck. I summon Kaminari Attack!" Michael continued.

Another Genex Controller appeared, sitting on the ground as the bulbs on its head flashed. [ATK: 1400] Next to it, a tall man with grey hair, bushy grey eyebrows and a thick grey bird appeared, wielding a thunderbolt in one hand. [ATK: 1900]

**[Kali: 5100 / Michael: 6000]**

"Now, I tune my level five Kaminari Attack to my level three Genex Controller!" Michael said, the corners of his lips turning up in a small grin. "Gusting winds call forth a new entity, take flight and ride the winds of victory! Synchro Summon! Soar, Vindikite R-Genex!" He chanted.

A green creature that looked like a combination of a plane and bird with a jet engine as its tail appeared, screeching loudly. [ATK: 2400]

"Vindikite attacks your face-down monster!" Michael declared.

Vindikite flew forward at an incredible speed, smashing straight through Kali's set card which revealed itself to be a small, colorful dragonfly.

"When Vindikite destroys a monster, I can add one 'Genex' monster to my hand." Michael said, reaching for his deck.

"When Wattdragonfly is destroyed, I can special summon one Watt monster from my deck. I summon another Wattdragonfly!" Kali grinned.

Another dragonfly appeared, turning blue signaling that it was in defense mode. [DEF: 100]

"Tch. I can't use Accelerator's effect, but I can still add Genex Turbine to my hand." Michael grumbled. "Accelerator attacks your Wattdragonfly." Michael said.

The accelerator monster fired another beam at Wattdragonfly, destroying it only to have it be replaced by another identical one.

"I'll use its effect to special summon another one." Kali grinned.

"Triarm, destroy it!" Michael commanded.

Triarm did exactly that, firing three shots at Wattdragonfly even though it was destroyed after the first. An electrified giraffe appeared in Wattdragonflys place, paying at the ground. [ATK: 1200]

"I use my last Wattdragonfly to summon Wattgiraffe." Kali explained.

"I end my turn." Michael said.

"You should go talk to him because it's better than staying here, especially with these new Security staff. Also, I heard he knows where that guy you're looking for is." Kali responded. "I summon Wattberyx, and then I activate Lightning Vortex! I drop one card from my hand to destroy all your face-up monsters!" The Watt duelist said, a grin spreading across her face.

A huge bolt of lightning shot down from above, striking Michaels field and destroying all three of his monsters. A small orange fish that was charged with electricity appeared next to Wattgiraffe mere moments after. [ATK: 300]

"Now, I tune my level three Wattberyx and my level four Wattgiraffe! The sky darkens and the winds blow, thunder roars and lightning flashes! Descend from the storm! Synchro Summon, Watthydra!" Kali chanted.

A bolt of lightning struck the field, a seven headed hydra with a blue body appeared. The top of each head was pale green and the jaw and neck of each was white. Each head shrieked in turn, discharging electricity into the air. [ATK: 1500]

"Next, I equip Watthydra with two copies of Wattcube! Then I send both of them to the graveyard to increase my Watthydra's strength by 1000 for each, for a grand total of 3500!" Kali said.

"3500?" Michael gasped.

"Yep! Now, Watthydra attacks you directly!" Kali grinned. Watthydra charged forward, the main head biting Michael.

**[Kali: 5100 / Michael: 2500]**

"When Watthydra inflicts damage via a direct attack, I can remove from play one card from deck and add it to my hand during the second Standby Phase after I activate this effect. I remove Monster Reborn. That ends my turn." Kali said.

"He knows where that guy is, eh? Maybe I will go pay him a visit." Michael mused.

"You have a duel to lose before you can go do that." Kali teased.

"Hmm." Michael hummed as he placed his hand on his deck. He had three cards in his hand; Genex Spare, Genex Solar and Genex Turbine. If he couldn't win this turn, Watthydra would finish him off. He glanced at his face-down card. It was a trap known as Synchro Material, it would let him use Watthydra as Synchro material, but he wouldn't be able to conduct his Battle Phase. With the timer ticking down on Monster Reborn being added to Kali's hand, he couldn't take that chance. It all rode on his draw.

"Well? Do you give up?" Kali asked.

"Draw!" Michael said at last. A grin crossed his face when he saw what he'd drawn. "I activate Mind Control! I take control of Watthydra! Then, I summon Genex Recycled!" Michael said.

Watthydra disappeared for a moment and then reappeared on Michael's side, a mechanical creature that looked like Genex Controller appearing. This one was better proportioned and had no bulbs on its head, however. [ATK: 200]

"Now, I tune my level one Genex Recycled and my level seven Watthydra!" Michael said. "Our hearts beat as one, opening the path to a new horizon! The warrior who out speeds all! Synchro Summon! Ride on, Genex Ally Axel!" The brown-haired duelist chanted.

A creature covered almost entirely in silver armor appeared, with matches of yellow metal on his hands, the back of his legs and across his waist where there was no silver armor. The new monster had wheels instead of feet and on its back was a ring with two smaller circular devices on the sides of the ring. [ATK: 2600]

"Next, I use Genex Ally Axel's effect! Once per turn, by discarding one card from my hand, I can special summon one level four or lower Machine monster from my graveyard! Be reborn, Genex Worker!" Michael shouted.

A monster that resembled a yellow air boat appeared. It began to glow brightly, Genex Ally Axel doubling its attack with its effect. [ATK: 1200 - 2400]

"The monster summoned by Genex Ally Axel can't attack an opponent directly though." Kali reminded him.

"I never planned to attack with Worker. I use his effect to tribute him to special summon another Genex monster from my hand! I summon Genex Solar!" Michael announced.

Genex Worker was replaced by an orange humanoid machine, with a jet pack on its back and wing flaps on the sides of its arms. [ATK: 2500]

"You never cease to amaze me." Kali laughed.

"Genex Solar, direct attack!" Michael commanded. Genex Solar flew forward and punched the air in front of Kali, reducing her life points.

**[Kali: 2600 / Michael: 2500]**

"Axel, finish her off!" Michael commanded.

Axel skated forward and pulled back his leg, swinging it forward and stopping it mere centimeters from Kali's head.

**[Kali: 0 / Michael: 2500]**

"So, what're you going to do?" Kali asked.

"I s'pose visiting Derek is the best option at this point." Michael said, taking a few steps towards his Duel Runner when one of his legs simply gave away. He recovered before he hit the ground, but the effect of this was not lost on Kali. He could hear her sigh and knew she was shaking her head before he even turned to look at her again.

"You're exhausted and it _is_ pretty late. Plus Security is still rounding up everyone racing around the safe zone trying to get away from them. You can stay here, come up stairs and I'll get you set up on this wonderful cement slab you can use as a bed." Kali smiled.

"That sounds lovely, thank you." Michael chuckled. As he trudged up the stairs, he saw flashes of red on the buildings outside and knew Security was nearby. But being worn out from his duel and the earlier fear and adrenaline, he paid it no mind. He simply wouldn't have the strength to go through an entire cat-and-mouse chase with them. A weak smile crossed his face when he reached the second floor, seeing that the only suitable place for him to sleep would in fact be a large piece of concrete that had fallen from the ceiling.

* * *

><p>AN: I've had this bit done for a while, just had to get around to spell-checking and proofreading it. I really don't have anything to say, so I'll wish you all a good day and I'll see you next time.


	3. Chapter 3: Core Meltdown

Michael only woke up the next morning because Kali shook him awake. He was stiff from sleeping on a concrete slap and his side and one of his arms were sore from being pressed up against it all night. They had done their best to makeshift him a bed, Kali lending him a table-cloth to use as a blanket. For a pillow, Michael had simply folded up his vest and slept on that. They had done their best but sleeping on concrete was still uncomfortable.

"Sleep well?" Kali asked.

"It was alright." Michael shrugged.

"Hehe. Anyway, here." Kali said, tossing two pieces of toast in his direction. Michael caught the first and fumbled with the second, barely managed to snatch it out of the air before it hit the ground. He quickly devoured both pieces and then sat quietly on the piece of concrete that had been his bed.

"So are you going to go see Derek?" Kali asked.

"Probably. I have no idea where he is though." Michael replied.

"I know the way, I'll go with you." Kali said.

"It's fine." Michael said, shaking his head.

"No, I'm going with you. You're a pushover when it comes to this. He'll tell you to beat it and you'll leave without a second thought." Kali said with a grin on her face.

"The sad part is that you're right. Let's head out, then." Michael said, standing up and dusting himself off. Kali followed him out of the room and downstairs, where he wheeled his Duel Runner out onto the street and hopped on. Kali sat behind him and hugged him around the waist as he sped off, with Kali giving him directions every step of the way. They weaved their way down the streets and alley ways, thankful for the fact Security didn't seem to be in this particular area.

"Here! Down the stairs!" Kali shouted.

"Into the subway system?" Michael asked, shouting to be heard over the roar of the wind.

"Yeah!" Kali shouted. The Duel Runner came to a grinding halt, almost throwing Kali and Michael off. "What the hell are you doing, stopping like that?" Kali scolded, dismounting the Duel Runner.

"You really thought I was going to drive down stairs? This isn't a movie. That stuff is dangerous and we probably would've crashed and gotten hurt." Michael sighed. Michael wheeled his Duel Runner down the stairs; he was convinced someone would steal it if he left it up there. Now that the gang he'd been a part of had fallen into ruin, he had nowhere to keep his Duel Runner safe and now the gang members who had gotten away would probably be prowling the streets for targets to get something else set up.

Kali led the way. Michael followed her as she proceeded down the stairs and down the hallway. The subway system had become unusable due to the tunnels collapsing, and the people of Satellite simply didn't have the resources to clear the tunnels, so they'd been forgotten. Kali eventually came to a counter which Michael can only assumed used to sell tickets. Reluctantly leaving his Duel Runner leaning up against the wall, he hopped over the counter as well.

"He's in there. Just open the door, he'll just tell you to go away if you knock." Kali said pointing to the door directly in front of them that said 'Employees Only'.

"Whatever you say." Michael said turning the knob and pushing the door open.

"Go away." A voice called from inside the room.

"It's Michael; I want to ask you something." Michael said, taking a few steps into the room. Computer parts and wires were scattered across the floor. The room was dark and despite the fact there was a monitor on at the back of the room, he couldn't make out anything in that area where he assumed Derek must have been.

"Michael? Go away thief, I don't want to talk to you." The voice called again.

"Derek? It's me, Kali. Could you please talk to him? For me?" Kali pleaded.

"I'm not even that fond of you, so why would I do something like that? Now stop intruding and leave." Derek's voice scoffed.

"Ouch…" Kali whispered.

"Now you're just being rude." Michael said loudly.

"Rude? You barge into my living space unannounced asking for favors, continue to stay after I tell you to leave and have the audacity to call me rude?" The voice challenged.

"How about a duel then? If I win, you'll talk to me. If you win, we'll leave and never return." Michael offered.

"No. Well, not on those terms. If I win, you'll leave and give me all your Genex tuners." The voice said.

"No deal." Michael said firmly.

"Oh? My valuable information isn't worth a few tuners? Well, good-bye then. You can show yourselves out." The voice laughed.

"Arghh… fine, I accept your terms!" Michael shouted into the darkness.

"Ohoho. How unexpected." The voice laughed. There was the sound of objects moving, a few of them clattering noisily to the ground. The owner of the voice emerged from the darkness. He was a tall boy, with skinny limbs. He had jet black hair that fell above his eyes that he brushed to one side to keep it from obscuring his vision, thick glasses on his face. He was dressed for leisure, wearing a baggy white t-shirt and grey sweat pants.

"You're really betting all your tuners on this? You didn't even want to see him at first but now you're betting the heart of your deck just to have a chance to talk to him?" Kali asked quietly.

"It was a lapse in judgment, his attitude got to me." Michael admitted. "But… I guess I owe it him to go through with it now." He sighed.

"Alright, follow me." Derek said, leading the other two duelists out of the room and down another flight of stairs to the subway platform. He stood at one end, Michael stood at the other and Kali sat on an aged bench to watch.

"Duel!" They shouted in unison.

**[Derek: 8000 / Michael: 8000]**

"You go first." Derek said.

"Alright. I draw five, then one for my turn. I set one monster and I also set one card face-down. That's all." Michael said.

"Draw." Derek said. The black-haired boy began to chuckle as he looked at his card, looking up at Michael with a smile on his face. "Even back then you never saw me duel before, did you?" He asked.

"I can't say that I have." Michael replied.

"Well, then you're in for a treat. I remove from play the Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru from my hand to special summon Koa'ki Meiru Maximus!" Derek shouted.

Behind Derek a silver mechanical dragon appeared, teeth bared with two green eyes and a strange symbol on its forehead. [ATK: 3000]

"3000?" Michael grumbled.

"That's not all. Maximus, destroy his set card!" Derek commanded. The dragon roared and began to flap its silver wings, sending blades of air shooting towards Michaels set card and destroying it.

"Well that's no good." Michal sighed as he moved his set Scrap-Iron Scarecrow from the field to the graveyard.

"Now, Maximus attacks your set monster!" Derek shouted. The dragon flew forward and crushed Michael's face-down card with its claw. "During my Main Phase 2, I activate the continuous spell Burden of the Mighty! All your monsters lose attack points equal to their level x100. Then I end my turn." Derek said.

Koa'ki Meiru Maximus gave a low growl and began to stumble, the red mark on its head pulsating violently. Suddenly, another creature wielding two swords appeared next to Maximus. It had a mark similar to the one Maximus had on its forehead on its torso. With an impressive lunge, Maximus devoured the new creature in one bite. After a few moments the pulsating mark on its forehead became calm and Maximus let out a satisfied growl.

"An effect?" Michael guessed.

"In order for Maximus to stay on the field, he has to consume cores. So during each of my End Phases I have to discard one Koa'ki Meiru monster or one Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru. But that's the price you pay for strong monsters." Derek said.

"Draw." Michael said, his eyes glancing over his hand. If Maximus was going to destroy whatever monster he summoned with its effect, he might as well play a card anyway. "I summon Genex Undine!" Michael announced.

A blue mechanical creature appeared, its body made up of several liquid filled canisters and tubes. [ATK: 1200 - 900]

"By sending one Water monster from my deck to the graveyard, I can add one Genex Controller to my hand. So I'll do that and end my turn." Michael said.

"Draw. Maximus, destroy Genex Undine and then attack him directly!" Derek shouted. Maximus flapped its wings and took the air, flying forward and smashing through Undine and continued to fly forward ramming headfirst into Michael.

**[Derek: 8000 / Michael: 5000]**

"I end my turn, and send Powerhand to the graveyard so Maximus can stay on the field." Derek grinned, his dragon devouring a yellow robot to calm the pulsating mark on its forehead.

"Draw. Looks like this is where I make my comeback." Michael said, a smile tugging at his lips.

"You think you can beat Maximus? Please, by all means, show me." Derek chuckled.

"First, I summon R-Genex Overseer! Then I use his effect to special summon the level three Genex Spare from my hand!" Michael shouted.

A blue robot attacked to a floating blue platform appeared. [ATK: 200 - 0] The blue robot raised its arms and formed a portal over Michael's field, dropping a small robot that appeared to have a radio for a head with a flower at the end of its left arm. [ATK: 800 - 500]

"Then, I activate Instant Fusion! For 1000 life points, I can fusion summon Mavelus." Michael said.

**[Derek: 8000 / Michael: 4000]**

A red bird with yellows wings, crown and tail appeared, flapping its wings and squawking loudly. [ATK: 1300 - 900]

"Now, use Genex Spare's effect! When I control another Genex monster, I can make Genex Spare's name Genex Controller. Now, I tune my level three Genex Controller and level four Mavelus together!" Michael announced. "Quaking earth, searing flames and blinding light come together to form a new entity! The power forged through unity! Synchro Summon, Genex Ally Triforce!" The brown-haired duelist chanted.

A white robot who was the opposite of Genex Ally Triarm appeared. This robot was white with a red visor, its three-pronged cannon the right arm as opposed to its left. [ATK: 2500 - 1800]

"Your monster isn't strong enough." Derek scoffed.

"I still have another tuner though. Next, I tune my level two R-Genex Overseer and my level seven Genex Ally Triforce! The one who charges endless through the darkness, the light that captives even the strongest foe! Synchro Summon! Charge, Locomotion R-Genex!" Michael chanted

A huge bulky robot whose main body was composed of a train car appeared. The robot was covered almost entirely in black metal, with the parts that weren't covered giving off a magnificent light. [ATK: 2500 - 1600]

"That one is even weaker than the other one!" Derek laughed.

"Locomotion's effect activates! When it's Synchro summoned, I take control of my opponent's monster with the highest level!" Michael shouted.

"What was that?" Derek shouted in disbelief. The black-haired duelist could only watch in horror as the huge light at the front of Locomotion's body lit up and shone and Koa'ki Meiru Maximus. The silver dragon changed sides, its strength dropping to 2200 due to Burden of the Mighty.

"Now I activate Maximus's effect to destroy Burden of the Mighty." Michael said grinning as the troublesome card shattered.

"Both my creatures attack you directly." Michael said. Maximus flew forward and rammed into Derek, with Locomotion simply charging forward and smashing directly into his foe.

**[Derek: 2500 / Michael: 4000]**

"I end my turn. On that note, since I can't pay for Maximus, he's destroyed." Michael sighed. Both duelists watched as the red mark on Maximus head began to pulsate, sending what Michael could only assume was searing pain through the dragon every time it did so. The dragon began to stumble back and forth, howling loudly before its body become engulfed in a red light that finally destroyed it.

"Draw. I summon Koa'ki Meiru Urnight!" Derek said.

A centaur-like creature appeared, covered in gold armor with long white hair and wielding an odd blade in on hand a shield in the other hand. On its chest plate was the same symbol that had been on Maximus's forehead. [ATK: 2000]

"I activate Urnight's effect! By revealing one Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru in my hand, I can special summon a level four or lower Koa'ki Meiru monster that isn't Urnight! I special summon Koa'ki Meiru Tornado!" Derek continued.

A muscular green creature vaguely resembling an ogre appeared, it had long grey hair and its body below its torso was unable to be seen due to the tornado that formed itself below the creature's waist. [ATK: 1500]

"Next, I activate Tornado's effect! I return one Iron Core of Koa'ki Meiru from my hand to the top of my deck to destroy all my opponents' special summoned monsters. That includes Synchro summoned ones too." Derek smirked, moving the second to last card in his hand to the top of his deck. "Urnight and Tornado attack you directly!" Derek shouted.

Koa'ki Meiru raised both of its arms, a strange object appearing above its head momentarily. A huge tornado appeared in the middle of the field, sucking in Locomotion and literally ripping the Machine monster apart. With nothing in its path, Urnight galloped forward and sliced Michael across the chest. Tornado simply conjured up a new storm below Michael's feet that reduced his life points.

**[Derek: 2500 / Michael: 500]**

"I end my turn. To keep Urnight on the field, I reveal the Koa'ki Meiru Rooklord in my hand." Derek explained.

"What do you have to do to keep Tornado?" Michael asked.

"Nothing, Tornado is one of the few Koa'ki Meiru who have no maintenance cost." Derek replied.

"You have to win this turn Michael." Kali said, speaking up for the first time during the duel.

"If I can get Vindikite out I could at least hold out for a few turns since it can't be attacked, use its effect to build up my attack force." Michael mumbled, looking over his hand as he drew.

"No, you have to win this turn. He has Rooklord in his hand. It's level seven monster but he can tribute summon it with only one tribute if the card he tributes is a Koa'ki Meiru monster. Then, he can remove one Koa'ki Meiru card in his graveyard to destroy two cards you control. Vindikite would be useless." Kali explained.

"I'd really appreciate if you didn't do that." Derek said coldly.

"Hey, he knows you have it in your hand I'm just telling him its effect." Kali shot back.

"Alright… so it's either inflict 2500 points of damage or destroy both his monsters." Michael said. "I summon Genex Controller." Michael said.

The robot with the disproportioned head resembling a radio head appeared, sitting on the ground and not moving. [ATK: 1400]

"Then, I activate Double Summon! When I control a Genex Controller, I can normal summon Genex Furnace without tributing." Michael continued.

A creature that was simply a sentient, walking furnace with a head on top of the furnace itself appeared. [ATK: 2000]

"Now, I tune my level three Genex Controller and level five Genex Furnace! The controller of the elements calls forth the power of searing flames! Synchro Summon! The flame burns through the darkness nights and harshest storms, Thermal Genex!" Michael chanted.

A large blue robot that had no legs, but rather hovered appeared. Blue flames spewed from the creature's shoulders, hands and the hole on its chest. The robotic creature slowly turned its head, locking eyes with Derek. [ATK: 2400 - 2600]

"Thermal Genex gains 200 extra attacks points for each Fire monster in the graveyard. With only one, it only gains 200 attack points. Now I'll have Thermal Genex attack Koa'ki Meiru Tornado!" Michael commanded.

The floating robot raised both of arms and fired a total of eight jets of blue flames at Koa'ki Meiru Tornado, burning the green creature to a crisp.

**[Derek: 1400 / Michael: 500]**

"Close, but no cigar. You couldn't deplete my life points or destroy both my monsters, so now I can have Rooklord finish you off." Derek sneered.

"This match is already over! Thermal, burn away the rest of his life points!" Michael commanded.

"What?" Derek shouted.

A powerful blue fire-ball shot out from the hole in Thermal Genex's chest, passing right by Urnight and striking Derek.

**[Derek: 0 /Michael: 500]**

"…How?" Was all Derek had to say as he fell to his knees in disbelief, Urnight disappearing as his duel disk disengaged.

"When Thermal Genex destroys an opponent's monster, it inflicts damage to my opponent equal to the number of Genex monsters in my graveyard x200. With eight in my grave, you took 1600 points of damage." Michael explained.

"Unbelievable…" Derek muttered. His voice trailed off in such a way that Michael thought he had more to say, but instead his former opponent simply stared blankly up at the ceiling.

"So, you'll talk to me now?" Michael asked.

"That was the agreement. Start talking." Derek grumbled as he rose to his feet.

"First question, how did you know I used Genex? We never dueled or talked about our decks when we were acquainted." The brown-haired boy asked.

"I got into Sector Security's database, looked at a few one of the files. One of them was yours." The glasses wearer responded, picking some dirt from underneath his fingernails.

"Why mine?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Your last name starts with an A, it was near the top." Derek replied, shrugging his shoulders.

"You know where Jared is?" Michael asked.

"I did."

"Did?"

"He disappeared. He was listed as being in the Facility and now he's not there. No idea what happened to him. No record of him being sent back to Satellite, so basic deduction assumes he's still in the city." Derek rattled off.

"How would I go about getting to the city?" Michael inquired.

"You could attempt to get through the trash pipeline, but it would end in failure. Ever since the new Director brought in Everest Ashur, security around there has been air tight." Derek explained.

"Any other way?" Derek asked.

"Talk to your criminal buddies down by the pier, see if one of them can't sneak you to the port in the city. Good luck though, port security has been increased too. They're especially thorough with the types of ships your friends can get access to." Derek chuckled.

"So there's no way…" A disheartened Michael sighed.

"Try and convince this one group that's bringing a boat here in a few days to take some picture and do some research to take you back with them." Derek suggested, shifting his weight to his other foot. It was clear he was getting fed with these questions.

"When are they coming?" Michael asked.

"Thursday. Now, are you done with this whole 'questioning me' business?" Derek snapped.

"Last one, why did you want my Genex tuners?" Michael asked.

"Simple: I don't like you. Your deck would be almost unplayable without any tuners." Derek chuckled, genuine malice seeping into his voice.

"That's all then, have a good day." Michael said, turning and walking off with Kali following him.

"Adios, and don't come back!" Derek called after them.

Michael nodded to Kali, signalling that he was ready to leave. The blonde girl stood up from the bench and as the duo were about to leave they felt a strange sensation. It was almost as if a pulse of energy had passed through them. Michael glanced over at Derek and saw the black-haired duelist had a puzzled expression on his face. He was tempted to ask him about it, but knew that if he did the most likely answer he'd receive would be Derek snarling out something along the lines of him already having questioned him enough. Having no more business with Derek, the duo left the black-haired duelist alone on the platform and began making their way out of the subway station.

* * *

><p>I'd like to thank all of you who reviewed for doing so, I appreciate it! I'll do my best to bring you an interesting story. The next segment involves a Turbo Duel, so if you like those you can look forward to it. That's all I have to say for now, so as usual I'll wish you a fine day and be on my way.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4: Speed World 2

After the incident with the strange pulse, Michael and Kali navigated their way through the subway station and stopped only to pick up his Duel Runner. The silence around them meant that Derek was either taking his time making his way back or he was just standing in that same spot on the platform, still puzzled by the pulse of energy that had passed through them all.

"So, what exactly is the history between you two anyway?" Kali asked as the duo made their way out of the subway station. Michael didn't respond immediately, instead focusing more on getting his Duel Runner back up the stairs in one piece.

"Well… you know that gang I hung around with, right?" Michael asked.

"Mhmm." Kali replied.

"Well, Derek and I had been… friends isn't the word, acquaintances would probably be better. We talked on occasion before I joined up with that gang, and we talked even less after that. We both enjoyed the others company though. One day I was told to go with some of the guys and nab a few Duel Runners to strip for parts." Michael started.

"Let me guess, Derek didn't approve?" Kali guessed.

"As fate would have it, one of the Duel Runner the guys had taken belonged to him. He ran out to try and stop us as the guys were loading it up. He tried to stop them, but he just… wasn't strong enough. I saw the look he gave me when I got into the truck. He's hated me ever since." Michael explained.

"You didn't try to stop them?" Kali asked.

"I talked to them before they started stripping it for parts. They said they'd leave it alone, but in exchange they'd have to strip mine down in its place. So I let them do what they pleased with his and never brought it up again." Michael sighed.

"You never talked to him about it?" Kali asked.

"What would I say? 'Hey sorry we took your Duel Runner, I tried to get it back but I didn't want to lose mine, so I guess you're out of luck'? Besides, he disappeared a few days later to what I can only assume was that underground sanctuary of his." Michael explained.

"Alright… so, about this guy you're looking for. I only know his name and that you're looking for him, I don't know why though." Kali admitted. "Mind enlightening me?"

"He helped me out a long time ago, I owe him a favor. About a week or so ago one of the guys have me this." Michael said, pausing and retrieving a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. He passed to Kali who unfolded it and read off the words on the page.

"'I need that favor'. Well that's helpful; he didn't give you anything to go on!" Kali sighed, passing the paper back to Michael who returned it to his pocket.

"Yeah… I asked the guy who gave it to me, but apparently it had passed through a chain of people before reaching me. I'm guessing he was in some kind of trouble. See how the whole thing seems hastily written and how the end of the 'r' shoots down the page? I'm assuming he wrote that, passed it someone and gave them instructions to get it to me. So now if I want to keep my word, I have to seek him out." Michael explained.

"You think he might be in the city?" Kali asked.

"Well, he was in the Facility apparently. That's in the city. Since there's no record of him being sent back here, that would make the most sense." Michael shrugged.

"Are you actually going to see if you can convince that group coming here on Thursday to take you to the city?" Kali asked.

"I suppose. It can't hurt to ask." Michael replied.

"Well, I'll go with you." Kali said.

"I'm not entirely sure what your motives are but I won't stop you." Michael said.

"So on Thursday… I'll walk down to the pier, and I guess you'll ride up there on your Duel Runner?"

"Yeah. Are you sure about walking alone though?" Michael asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah. I don't have a criminal mark, so Security wouldn't have a reason to stop me. I'll just stick to walking along the routes they usually patrol so no one will bother me. Plus, these new guys seem to be all business. I doubt they'd go out of their way just to cause me trouble." Kali explained. Michael and Kali said their good-byes and parted ways a little farther ahead, Michael going into a building he knew to be unoccupied to wait out the two days.

Thursday morning, Michael put on his helmet and hopped on his Duel Runner and began making his way towards the pier. He passed by one of the yellow marker that symbolized he was leaving the safe zone. He would be on their radar now, and he just had to hope he could avoid them.

He'd been driving for a few hundred meters, taking a system of alley ways to stay off the main roads and better his chances of not being found. But as luck would have it, a Security Officer was patrolling that area right as Michael sped out of the alley way and right into the officer's field of vision. In a matter of seconds, the officer had his siren on and was driving behind Michael.

"You're under arrest! Pull over!" The officer shouted.

"What did I do?" Michael shouted back. The officer was staring down at the screen on his Duel Runner, nodding slowly.

"Michael Aker! We have video surveillance that proves you were involved with an illegal Duel Runner ring; we have further evidence proving you were there the night we apprehended many of the suspects involved in the same ring! Your name is also on a list of names provided to us by some of your friends who cracked!" The officer shouted.

"Damn it…" Michael cursed under his breath. The officer found out who he was so easily with that computer of his because of his damned criminal mark. He tried to simply speed up and lose the officer, but the screen on his own Duel Runner began to beep.

"Speed World 2, set" A computerized voice beeped.

Crap, he'd forgotten Security could force duels. The world around the officer and Michael took on a purple-ish quality due to Speed World 2.

"Duel Mode, on. Autopilot, Standby." The voice said.

"Turbo Duel!" The two duelists shouted in unison.

**[Michael: 8000, SPC: 0 / Security: 8000, SPC: 0]**

"I'll begin. Draw." The officer said. Both players gained a speed counter due to Speed World 2's effect. "I set four cards face-down and end my turn." The officer finished.

"I draw! I summon Genex Ally Bellflame!" Michael declared. He wasn't very concerned about the face-down cards. Most of Sector Security ran trap-heavy decks, so it was probably a combo that gave the officer more Speed Counters and limited Michael's attacking options.

A robot with a blue visor appeared and floated alongside the motorcycle as it sped down the street. The robot was mostly red, with parts of yellow around the neck and knees. Both of the creatures hands ended in a flamethrower with two more flamethrowers were mounted on its shoulders. [ATK: 1700]

"I activate my face-down Speed Edge! During each Standby Phase, if I have more Speed Counters than you. I inflict 300 damage to you times the difference!" The officer announced.

"Next, I activate Speed Spell – Summon Speeder! When I have 2 or more Speed Counters I can-"

"Acceleration Zone!" The officer shouted. A glowing white path appeared in front of the officer, normally when Acceleration Zone was used the controller shot forward along this path. But this officer didn't. He merely gained the six Speed Counters the trap granted him as Michael had activated a Speed Spell and kept his distance behind the Genex duelist.

"…I can special summon one level four or lower monster. I summon Genex Ally Crusher in defense mode." Michael finished.

"I activate my face-down Full Throttle! During each Standby Phase, I gain 1 additional Speed Counter!" The officer announced.

Another robot, this one clad in yellow armor, appeared on the opposite side of his Duel Runner. This one had one visible red-eye, the other eye being a telescope. On the robots back was what appeared to be a basket of grenades. The creature knelt down on one knee and crossed its arms over its chest, turning blue in the process. [DEF: 2000]

"I set two cards face-down and my turn." Michael sighed.

"I draw. During my Standby Phase, Full Throttle activates! I'll chain my second Full Throttle! So now, I gain 3 Speed Counters every Standby Phase." The officer smirked as his Speed Counters rose up to 11. "Now, Speed Edge inflicts 2400 damage to you." The officer said. A bolt of blue energy shot forward from the officer's Duel Runner and crashed into the back of Michael's.

**[Officer: 8000, SPC: 11 / Michael: 5600, SPC: 3]**

"He's already up to 11? With Speed Edge, this is going to get brutal..." Michael muttered to himself.

"When I control no monsters and I have Speed Counters are 8 or more Speed Counters than my opponent does, I can special summon this card from my hand! Come forth, Velocity Dragon!" The officer shouted.

_Velocity Dragon? _Michael's head whipped around to see the new monster. Never before had he heard of a monster called Velocity Dragon. Could it be when the new officers came in, they brought his creature with them?

A large brown dragon appeared behind the officers Duel Runner. It had four wings, two on its upperback and two on its lower back. On either side of its arm was what seemed to be half of a drill. The creature itself was blurry, as if it was moving in a small space very quickly. [ATK: ? - 4400]

"4400 attack points?" Michael shouted in disbelief.

"Velocity Dragon gains 400 attack for every Speed Counter I have." The officer chuckled.

"I activate my face-down Triggered Summon! When a monster is special summoned, we can each special summon one level four or lower monster from our hand!" Michael said. "I summon R-Genex Accelerator in attack mode!"

"Gate Blocker." The officer said simply.

A wall with a red-eye near the top appeared directly in front of Michael's Duel Runner. The wall immediately turned blue, having been placed in defense position. [DEF: 2000] Next to Crusher, a monster resembling a linear accelerator appeared. [ATK: 1500]

"Oh? Summoning a weak monster in attack mode? You're trying to dissuade me from attacking Crusher. But there's something you don't know about Velocity Dragon: By removing three Speed Counters, he can inflict Piercing Damage. I'll use that effect right now. I remove three Speed Counters to give Velocity Dragon its piercing effect, and then I attack Genex Ally Crusher!" The officer shouted.

Velocity Dragon raised both of its arms and put them together, forming a complete drill from the halves on either side of its arms. The dragon began to spin and then charged forward, smashing through Crusher and striking Michael's Duel Runner. The dragon did a U-turn and returned to the officer's side, roaring triumphantly.

**[Officer: 8000, SPC: 8 / Michael: 4400, SPC: 3]**

"I tribute Gate Blocker to special summon Gate Blocker 2 from my hand, and then I end my turn." The officer finished.

The wall in front of Michael was replaced by an identical wall, except this one had a second eye below the first. [DEF: 3000]

"Draw." Michael said. He didn't gain any Speed Counters thanks to Gate Blocker 2, while his opponent gained 3 thanks to his combo. A wave of energy hit him as Speed Edge shaved off 2400 more life points.

**[Officer: 8000, SPC: 11 / Michael: 2000, SPC: 3]**

"The effect of R-Genex Accelerator activates! When I add a Genex monster to my hand, I can special summon it! I special summon Genex Blastfan!" Michael announced.

A green robot with tiny arms and legs and a huge fan taking up the majority of its torso appeared. As it did, the fan inside the creature's torso began to spin very fast. [ATK: 1600]

"When Blastfan is special summoned, I can special summon one Dark Genex monster from my deck. I summon Genex Ally Solid!" Michael continued.

A blue robot with large red eyes appeared. The robot had spikes on the sides of its boots and on the sides of its arm, also on its shoulders and head. [ATK: 500]

"Oh? We have it on record that your deck has more powerful cards than that. Why would you waste it on something that with an effect you can't even use?" The officer asked with a mocking smile.

"What I need right now is cards, not power." Michael mumbled to himself. "Next, I activate my face-down Dark Spirit Art – Greed! I can tribute one Dark monster on my side of the field to draw two cards. You could negate this by revealing a spell card in your hand, but since your hand is empty that would be impossible." Michael said, a smile tugging at his lips.

"So that's why you summoned Solid. Interesting." The officer said with a bemused expression.

"Not exactly... Bellflame, I tribute you!" Michael declared.

"What? Why?" The officer asked.

The kanji for the word 'Greed' appeared under Bellflame and the monster disappeared in a pillar of darkness. Michael silently moved the monster to his graveyard and drew two cards. A smile crossed his face when he saw his pulls.

"Since I haven't used my normal summon yet, I normal summon Genex Undine!" Michael announced.

A blue monster composed of many liquid filled canisters appeared on his side of the field. [ATK: 1200]

"Genex Undine's effect activates! I send one Water monster from my deck to the graveyard to add one Genex Controller to my hand. Then R-Genex Accelerator lets me special summon it!" Michael continued.

The radio-like monster appeared, floating along peacefully. With this, Michael's field was full. [ATK: 1400]

"That Accelerator is a nuisance... but even so, with the cards in your extra deck and what you have on the field you can't Synchro Summon anything that can even come to close to beating either of my two monsters." The officer said confidently.

"I'm not done though. I activate Genex Ally Solid's effect! I send Undine to the graveyard to draw two cards." Michael said. Moving the monster the graveyard, he drew two more cards. He paused for a long while after he drew them.

"Well?" The officer asked.

"I'm sorry I was just… relieved. First of all, I activate the Speed Spell – Instant Fusion! When I have 3 or more Speed Counters, I can pay 1000 life points to special summon one level five or lower Fusion monster from my extra deck! I summon Kamionwizard!" Michael said, excitement flowing into his voice.

**[Officer: 8000, SPC: 11 / Michael: 1000, SPC: 3]**

A monster with long blonde hair and a dark blue cape appeared. The creature was wearing red-and-black armor with a grey mask covering his face and wielded a scythe. [ATK: 1300]

"Now, I tune my level two Genex Ally Solid, level four Kamionwizard and level three Genex Controller!" Michael started. "The one who charges endless through the darkness, the light that captives even the strongest foe! Synchro Summon! Charge, Locomotion R-Genex!"

The black train creature appeared again, letting out a bellowing roar as it raced up behind Michael's Duel Runner. [ATK: 2500] Locomotion raised both of its arms and pointed them towards Velocity Dragon. The light in the middle of Locomotion's chest shone directly on the dragon and after a few seconds, the brown dragon flew over to Michael's side of the field.

"Locomotion lets you take control of my highest leveled monster… not that he's any use to you. With only three Speed Counters, his strength drops to 1200!" The officer laughed.

"I still have two cards left." Michael reminded him. The officer immediately stopped laughing. "I activate the Speed Spell – Enemy Controller! When I have three or more Speed Counters, I can activate one of two effects. I won't go into both since I'm only using the first one, which is to change your monster into attack mode."

"What? No!" The officer screamed. A video game controller appeared behind Gate Blocker 2 and the connected itself to the monster. A button combo Michael couldn't see due to Gate Blocker 2 blocking his vision was put in, and the monster returned its regular colors as it was no longer in defense mode. [ATK: 100]

"Velocity Dragon, destroy Gate Blocker 2!" Michael commanded. The brown dragon obliged, forming the same drill it had when it attacked Michael. The dragon began to spin and charged forward, piercing through Gate Blocker 2.

**[Officer: 6900, SPC: 11 / Michael: 1000, SPC: 3]**

"Now, Blastfan! Accelerator! Direct attack!" Michael ordered.

The robotic creatures obliged, with the first sending blades of air at the officer while the second one fired a laser at him.

**[Officer: 3800, SPC: 11 / Michael: 1000, SPC: 3]**

"Hehe… it's all pointless. Your last monster isn't strong enough! I'll crush you the second you end your turn with Speed Edge!" The officer shouted, smirking victoriously.

"I activate the Speed Spell – Battle Tuned! I remove from play a Tuner monster from my graveyard to have Locomotion gain attack points equal to its attack points! I remove Genex Controller to increase Locomotion's attack power by 1400!" Michael announced.

"Unbelievable…" The officer whispered, the color draining from his face as the train creatures attack rose all the way up to 3900.

"Locomotion, end this!" Michael ordered.

The train monster turned around and rammed straight into the officer. Two panels opened up on the sides of the officers Duel Runner, letting off steam and bringing the Duel Runner to a stop, allowing Michael to quickly lose his former pursuer.

**[Officer: 0, SPC: 11 / Michael: 1000, SPC: 3]**

"Phew." Michael said, sighing in relief as his Duel Runner screen flashed, bringing up a picture of his face with the word 'Winner' next to it. Looking up, the duel had brought him close to his destination. In fact, he could even see Kali standing in front of the entrance to the pier. He pulled up next to her and hopped off his Duel Runner. Removing his helmet, he gave the blonde girl a weak smile and tossed his helmet onto the seat of his Duel Runner.

"Get into any trouble?" Kali asked.

"I got into a duel with Security. Did you know they have new cards?" Michael asked.

"Really?"

"Yeah, this guy used a 'Velocity' monster. Since Security loves Speed Counters, and that's how this monster could be summoned and where it got its strength from, I'm almost certain there's an entire series of cards like the one I fought against." Michael said. He and Kali started to walk down the pier, Michael wheeling his Duel Runner along beside him.

"Interesting. So… think that's it?" Kali asked, pointing a ship docked at the pier.

"It… has to be." Michael said taken aback by the ship. It was… well, beautiful. It was a pristine white ship that looked like a small cruise ship. It seemed out of place among the rest of the docked ships, all of which were grey or a rusted brown in color. It had to belong to whatever group Derek had mentioned was coming since no cruise ships ever came to Satellite. Several robed figures were standing on the pier, chatting with each other.

"Alright, let's do this then." Michael said.

All they had to do was ask. If they got turned away, they hadn't lost anything. Even so, Michael felt a sense of unease settle over him as he approached the robed figures.

* * *

><p>Velocity Dragon<p>

Level 8

EARTH

Dragon/Effect

? Atk / ? Def

This card can be special summoned from your hand if you control no monsters and your Speed Counters exceed your opponents by 8 or more. This cards attack and defense are equal to the number of Speed Counters you have x400. You can remove 3 Speed Counters to have this card gain the following effect: During battle between this attacking card and a Defense Position monster whose DEF is lower than the ATK of this card, inflict the difference as Battle Damage to your opponent.

* * *

><p>I'll be posting the stats of any custom cards down here. This was a fun chapter to write, especially when I had to figure out a way for Michael to get through the last turn. I chose to use Speed World 2 over Speed World since it gives me more options for how I can handle Turbo Duels. Also, a question for my readers: Do you have any suggestions on how I could improve my formatting? The way it is now, something about it makes it unappealing to read over. Any suggestions would be appreciated. That's all I have to say for now, you all have yourselves a fine day.<p> 


	5. Chapter 5: Spell of Pain

Michael and Kali walked past several robed figures and noted they were all dressed similarly. Their robes all had high collars with long white sleeves and the fronts were black, with a stripe that was either green or brown going down the front. Michael noticed that as he passed them, they would stop what they were doing and follow him with their eyes. One person stood out from the rest. He was sitting on a post on the edge of the pier, next to the boarding ramp, eating an apple. The male had dark red hair that fell just above his ears and curved upwards at the ends.

"Hey there." Michael said as he approached the red-haired male.

"Hi." The red-haired male said, eyeing the duo suspiciously.

"Is this your ship?" Michael asked.

"No, but I know the guy who owns it."

"What are the odds you could let us on board and bring us back to the city?" Michael asked. He was terrible at beating around the bush and when it came to situations like this one, so he had decided to simply flat-out ask him.

"You… can't be serious!" The red-haired male laughed. His laughter climbed in volume, bringing the attention of everyone who wasn't already watching them to them.

"Alright then, we'll-" Michael started.

"Jehan, what seems to be all the commotion?"

All eyes turned to the new arrival. He was a bit taller than Michael and was dressed very nicely, wearing black dress pants and black suit jacket with a white-collar shirt underneath. The man had medium length silver hair that parted down the middle.

"These two," Jehan started as he jabbed a finger towards Michael and Kali. "Wanted us to smuggle them to the city."

"Oh?" The silver-haired man asked, raising an eyebrow. He moved to stand in front of Michael and nodded slowly to himself. "Perhaps we can make some sort of deal; all you have to do is pass a simple test." The man said.

"You can't be serious!" Jehan shouted in disbelief.

"I'm quite serious." The man said. He turned his head sideways and called for someone named 'Vincent'. Almost immediately, a man wearing the same robe as all the others appeared. The man stood on par with the silver-haired man and had very short, snow-white hair.

"Yes, Lord Rugal?" The white-haired male who was apparently named Vincent asked.

"I want you to duel this young man." Rugal said, motioning to Michael.

"Can do." Vincent nodded. The white-haired male moved a fair bit a ways from Michael and the others and activated his duel disk.

"Now, before you start I'll give you a chance to back out. Dueling Vincent can be painful. Literally." Rugal said, giving Michael a hard stare.

"But if I win, you'll take us to the city?" Michael asked.

"Yes." The silver-haired man nodded.

"Alright. I accept those terms." Michael said as he moved to stand opposite of Vincent.

"Duel!"

**[Vincent: 8000 / Michael: 8000]**

"I draw. I play Dark Room of Nightmare." Vincent said, chuckling slightly. A room began to form around the two, almost as if it was a field spell. Stone walls rose up around them, Michael taking note that the red-haired boy had started laughing before the room was even finished constructing itself. A torch hung on the either side of the room. Screams of pain that sounded off in the distance filled the air.

"Creepy…" Michael muttered.

"Burning Land comes next, followed by Dark Snake Syndrome." Vincent said with that strange grin on his face. The torches fell from their spot on the walls and fire began to rise up around the room, creating a circle of flames around the two duelists. Two snakes appeared, each enveloped in an aura of darkness. One wrapped itself around Michael's left leg, the other his right. A quick glance at Vincent's side of the field revealed he had been given the same treatment.

"I'll admit I haven't heard of any of these cards." Michael said, glancing around the stone room.

"Oh, then you're in for some fun. I set one monster and end my turn." Vincent chuckled.

"Draw." Michael said. Michael suddenly felt hot. That was weird… holograms didn't give off heat. Maybe it was a placebo effect, seeing all this fire was making him feel hot. But the pain he felt next was certainly real. Something cut across his back, tearing his vest open. Whipping around, Michael saw the shadow of a large man on the wall behind him. The shadow of the man was holding a whip, which Michael assumed had been used to deliver the blow he just felt.

"Burning Land inflicts 500 damage to each of us during our Standby Phases, and Dark Room of Nightmare inflicts 300 points of damage to you whenever you take effect damage." Vincent said, trying to suppress a laugh.

**[Vincent: 8000 / Michael: 7200]**

"That… felt real though." Michael said slowly.

"It is." Vincent said with the urge to laugh getting the better of him. Michael suddenly felt very uneasy about dueling this guy now.

"What do you mean?" Michael asked. He received no response, Vincent only continuing to laugh at a joke he failed to see. So Michael continued on with his turn by summoning Genex Neutron.

The robot appeared on his side of the field, the majority of its body being composed of black and grey metal aside from its hands, feet and torso which were made of orange metal. [ATK: 1800]

"Genex Neutron attacks your set monster." Michael said.

Neutron shot a blast of energy which hit the set card, revealing a turtle with a strange mechanism on its back. The image of the turtle lasted only an instant however, as an orange dragon with flames covering its back appeared in its place. [ATK: 1500]

"When UFO Turtle is destroyed, I can special summon a Fire monster with 1500 or less attack points from my deck. I picked Solar Flare Dragon." Vincent explained.

"I set two cards face-down and end my turn." Michal said. Scrap-Iron Scarecrow and Triggered Summon. Whatever this guy was going to bring, Michael would be ready.

"Draw. I take 500 damage from Burning Land." Vincent said beginning to chuckle as the flames blew in his direction.

**[Vincent: 7500 / Michael: 7200]**

"Then, we each take 200 damage from Dark Snake Syndrome." Vincent continued. The dark snakes around both players' ankles slowly begin to move up their legs. While Michael was watching the snakes, he felt whip strike again, tearing through the fabric of his vest and shirt.

**[Vincent: 7300 / Michael: 6700]**

"I summon a second Solar Flare Dragon." Vincent continued, still smiling.

A dragon identical to the first appeared, Michael starting to feel a little dizzy from the heat the two dragons were giving off. [ATK: 1500]

"While I control Solar Flare Dragon, you can't select another Pyro-type monster as an attack. So, since they're both Pyro-types, you can't attack either of them. Also, when I end my turn you take 500 damage for each of them," Vincent continued. "So I'll end my turn now."

The dragons shot twin streams of flames at Michael, who raised his arms to protect his face. The heat was unbearable, and when he lowered his arms he saw that his sleeves had burned away and his arms were covered in scorch marks. Panic began to set one. The whip struck him again, knocking him the ground. Then a second time while he was on the ground. Vincent started laughing manically. Michael was truly scared at this point.

**[Vincent: 7300 / Michael: 5100]**

"Draw." Michael said quietly. He forced himself to stand again, his back screaming in protest. He gingerly touched his arm with his hand. It stung like hell, but it wasn't that bad. Well, he hoped it wasn't. Suddenly, another wave of flames washed over him. He immediately knew what was coming next, but even preparing for the whip didn't lessen the sting.

**[Vincent: 7300 / Michael: 4300]**

"I activate Mind Control… to take control of your Solar Flare Dragon…" Michael said, starting to pant. The heat and the pain were getting to him. The dragon moving closer wasn't helping, but he had to continue. "Then, I summon Genex Controller." Michael said.

The radio monster appeared, glancing around the room in confusion before sitting down. [ATK: 1400]

"I tune the level four Solar Dragon and the level three Genex Controller…" Michael started. "Quaking earth, searing flames and blindly light come together to form a new entity! The power forged through unity! Synchro Summon, Genex Ally Triforce!"

The white robot with the blue visor and three-pronged cannon appeared, one of the lights on the cannon gave off a bright red light. [ATK: 2500]

"Triforce attacks your remaining Solar Flare Dragon." Michael said simply.

Triforce easily destroyed the dragon with the three blasts of energy. At the moment, it raised its cannon again and a jet of flames shot towards Vincent.

**[Vincent: 4800 / Michael: 4300]**

"Ahh, so your monster gained a new ability from the creature you stole from me? One of those: 'When this card destroys a monster, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the attack of that monster' effects? How fun!" Vincent laughed.

"I attack directly with Genex Neutron." Michael mumbled.

Neutron raised its arm and fired a beam of energy at Vincent, further depleting the white-haired player's life points.

**[Vincent: 3000 / Michael: 4300]**

"Draw. I take 500 damage from Burning Land." Vincent said as a wave of flames washed over him. They didn't seem to have any effect on him. "Then, we each take 400 damage from Dark Snake Syndrome!" Vincent cackled as the snakes climbed up farther.

**[Vincent: 2100 / Michael: 3600]**

"The damage increased?" Michael mumbled out as the snakes rose up farther. They were squeezing his legs tightly, and assumed were cutting off his circulation. Seconds later, the inevitable whip strike came and Michael could swear he could feel something running down his back.

"Dark Snake Syndrome doubles every time my Standby Phase rolls around." Vincent chuckled. "Next, I summon Fire Trooper." Vincent continued.

A creature appeared that Michael couldn't quite make out due to his vision starting to go blurry. He rubbed his eyes, then felt something powerful smash into his stomach and sent him flying into the wall. Thankfully, he managed to throw himself forward onto the ground before the flames from Burning Land burnt him. As he was struggling to stand up, the endeavor made all the harder by the snakes constricting his legs, another whip struck him across the back.

**[Vincent: 2100 / Michael: 2300]**

"When I summon Fire Trooper, I can send it to the graveyard to inflict 1000 points of damage to my opponent. That ends my turn." Vincent chuckled. Always with the chuckling. As Michael looked up, the terror he felt before was only re-affirmed. Vincent's head, turned at a slight angle, his mouth open as he chuckled, the darkness of the room and the fire behind him gave the white-haired player a terrifying image.

"Draw…" Michael said. Flames once again washed over him, and then the whip struck his back with a sickening sound. The sound something makes when it hits water and then flesh.

**[Vincent: 2100 / Michael: 1500]**

"I summon Genex Worker and attack with everything…" Michael said quickly, trying to end the duel while his consciousness held out. His creatures charged forward, but something flew by Vincent's field and they all stopped.

"By discarding Swift Scarecrow when a direct attack is declared, I can negate the attack and end the Battle Phase." Vincent grinned.

"You… actually had Swift Scarecrow?" Michael asked his voice weak.

"It helps me… prolong your suffering." Vincent chuckled.

"I set one card and… and… end my turn…" Michael said quietly.

"Draw. 500 from Burning Land." Vincent stated. The flames once again rose up, and once again Vincent wasn't affected.

**[Vincent: 1600 / Michael: 1500]**

"Then 800 from Dark Snake Syndrome." Vincent continued, the snakes rising farther up the players bodies. Michael couldn't stand up anymore. He fell to his knees, the pressure the snakes applying had made standing too difficult.

**[Vincent: 800 / Michael: 400]**

"I summon Archfiend Interceptor." Vincent said simply, that same grin still plastered on his face.

A demonic football player with a ghostly white face appeared. The football player had two huge red eyes and two more hands grew out of each of his brown, grotesque shoulders. [ATK: 1400]

"When you select Interceptor Archfiend as an attack target, you take 500 damage. I set one card face-down, and I'll let Burning Land finish you off." Vincent finished.

"During your End Phase, I activate my face-down Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Burning Land." Michael stated.

A storm began to brew in the room, absorbing all the fire. When the storm cleared, two torches again hung on the wall as the only source of light.

"Draw… If I just end my turn… it'll end in a draw…" Michael whispered to himself. The teenager was still on his knees, sweat matting his brown hair down to his head. His eyes stung and his throat burned. His back and legs throbbed with pain and his clothes had been scorched and torn. He just wanted this to be over.

"At this moment I activate my trap card, Morale Loss! If my opponent doesn't declare an attack this turn while he has face-up monsters on the field, they take 500 damage for each face-up monster they control." Vincent smirked.

"But that means…" Michael mumbled.

"That's right! You attack: You lose! You don't attack: You lose!" Vincent said, beginning to laugh madly.

"I… tribute Genex Ally Triforce…"

"Eh?" Vincent stopped laughing just in time to see a golden robot appear in Triforce's place. [ATK: 2500]

"Next…" Michael started. He swayed uneasily for a few moments, closing his eyes and lowering his head in an attempt to focus and keep conscious.

"What are you up to…?" Vincent muttered.

"I tribute Genex Worker to summon the Genex Controller in my hand." Michael managed to say.

The radio creature appearing on his field again as the air boat monster disappeared. [ATK: 1400] As the air boat monster disappeared, a blast of yellow energy shot out of the hole on Genex Solar's chest and flew directly into Vincent.

**[Vincent: 300 / Michael: 400]**

"When… Genex Solar is on the field… I inflict 500 points of… damage… graveyard… for each monster… sent." Michael said with as much volume as he could muster, which wasn't very much. Darkness was tugging at the edges of his vision and he was starting to feel numb.

"You already used up Triforce though! There's no other Genex Synchro monster you can make with Controller and Neutron!" Vincent said with a triumphant expression on his face.

"Scroll of Bewitchment… Wind…" Michael said quietly, using as few words as possible. A gust of wind began to blow through the room and Genex Neutron suddenly became green.

"No… NO!" Vincent howled. The fires of the torches began to flare up, the screams of distant pain became so much louder and the whip cracked right neck to Michael's ear.

"Sync…hro…" Michael said. He couldn't manage to choke out and words for the chant. With all the energy he had left, he pulled Windmill Genex from his extra deck and moved it above his duel disk. With a shaking hand, he went to put it down. That was when everything disappeared. Vincent, the room, the sounds of the pain, the cracking of the whip. It was all replaced by complete darkness.

"Ah, it's over." Rugal noted. The room dissolved, revealing Vincent standing and Michael collapsed on the ground.

"What happened?" Kali asked, turning to Rugal.

"Haha! He deserved it, trying to be smuggled into the city… idiot!" Jehan laughed.

"He agreed to this." Rugal reminded her. The man moved over to Vincent and clapped him on the shoulder. "Well done, Vincent." The man said, smiling at the white-haired duelist.

"I… lost?" Vincent said in disbelief, not even acknowledging Rugal's presence.

"Excuse me? …Jehan! Check his duel disk." Rugal ordered, nodding in Michael's direction.

"Eh? Sure, whatever." Jehan shrugged, jumping off the edge of the boat and onto the dock. The red-haired male strode across the pier and stood next to the fallen duelist, taking note of the various wounds on his back. A glance down revealed two monsters, neither of which he recognized but one of which was a Synchro monster that was at an odd angle. "It… says he has 400 life points left. Wait, he won?" Jehan shouted in disbelief.

"He… beat me…" Vincent muttered, still in shock.

"…Now what?" Jehan asked, looking up from Michael's body.

"We bring him on board and have the doctor look at him. Get some of the members who aren't doing anything at the moment and have them bring the boy's Duel Runner aboard." Rugal said after a brief pause.

"Whoa, we're actually bringing them along?" Jehan asked, the disbelief as clear as day in his voice.

"Yes, we made a deal after all." Rugal said, exasperation seeping into his voice.

"So? He's unconscious! We can just leave him here with her and be done with it! If she goes to Security, it'll be her word against ours." Jehan said.

"If we left him here and she went to Security…" Rugal said, pausing to look up at the sky. "It would be everyone's word against yours, Jehan."

"What-" Jehan stopped himself when he realized what Rugal was saying. Rugal would have everyone blame him for this. Gritting his teeth, the red-haired picked up Michael and made his way into the ship. A few moments of silence passed before Rugal turned to look at Kali.

"Welcome aboard."

* * *

><p>Morale Loss<br>Normal Trap

Activate only during your opponent's turn. If your opponent controls a face-up monster and does not declare an attack, inflict 500 damage to your opponent for each face-up monster they control.

* * *

><p>Well I tried something a tad different for this chapter and I think it looks better, but your feedback would be appreciated. You can probably guess who these guys were from their outfits and powers. Nothing else to say, so you all have yourselves a wonderful day.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6: Double Summon

"So, does he have any potential?"

"He might. He doesn't seem to have any extraordinary ability, but…"

"But…?"

"I think it would be in our best interest to monitor him further. It seems that- Oh he's waking up."

Michael slowly came to, his eyes opening revealing a mish-mash of colors and shapes. He was on something soft and in a white room. Very slowly, everything became clearer and Michael could make out two people, one in a white lab coat and the well-dressed man from earlier. The man in the lab coat glanced at the well-dressed man and then moved to stand over him.

"How are you feeling?" The man asked.

"I'm feeling alright." Michael replied. He tried to sit up but a searing pain shot through his back he fell back down onto the bed. He rubbed his face and felt a strange texture over where his criminal marker should have been. He looked to who he assumed was the doctor for an explanation.

"That patch we placed on your face is approximate to match your skin tone. It blocks the tracking signal it gives out so Security can't find you; as I'm sure you're aware people from Satellite are looked down upon in the city. Also your back is going to be sore for a while. I'll get you something for the pain." The man said. The man nodded at Rugal and left the room. As the man left, three more people entered the room. One was a woman with a large amount of short, midnight blue hair. Even with her hair she was a little shorter than Rugal. She was wearing a long-sleeved dark blue shirt that almost covered her hands and was a little bit lighter than her hair. She stood next to Rugal and didn't say a word.

"Man, you got roughed up." One of the other arrivals commented. It was the red-haired male from before. Jehan. He gave Michael an amused smile but didn't say anything else as leaned against the door frame.

"You're okay!" The last arrival was none other than Kali. She looked like she wanted to hug him but kept her distance due to his injuries.

"I have to ask, why exactly did you want us to bring you back to the city with us?" Rugal asked.

"I'm looking for someone. His name is Jared Valcrist." Michael said. Jehan glanced in Rugal's direction while the female whose name he still didn't know simply stared at a point off in the distance. Rugal nodded slowly.

"Ah… We know of him. Why do you need to find him?" Rugal asked.

"Do you know where he is? I owe him a favor. He sent me a message saying he needed help with something and I owe it to him to try and find him since… well, he's the one who gave me my deck." Michael explained.

"Hmm… that is very interesting. I know one way you could be sure to meet up with him." Rugal said as he removed an envelope from his pocket and extended it towards Michael. Taking the envelope, he saw two words printed on it: Fortune Cup.

"The Fortune Cup tournament?" Michael asked, giving Rugal a baffled expression.

"Yes. If you join, and he's still in the city, I'm sure he'll see that you joined and he'll seek you out. The Fortune Cup is a very big deal, as I'm sure you know. I don't much care for tournaments, so by taking my place you would actually be doing me a favor." Rugal explained.

"But you said I could go in your place!" Jehan protested, pushing himself off the door frame as he did so.

"This is for the greater good though." Rugal chuckled.

"But…!" Jehan cut himself off, his face contorting in rage before he stormed out of the room.

"If I'm causing problems you can just give this to him." Michael offered, holding the envelope back out to Rugal. The well-dressed man merely shook his head.

"No, it'll be alright. He has a bit of a temper. He'll calm down. Besides, I have another invitation, so I'll surprise him with it later." Rugal chuckled.

"They sent you two?" Michael asked.

"No. They sent one to Alyssa," The silver-haired man said, motioning to the woman at his side. "But she too decided to decline and so she gave her invitation to me to give to someone I see fit."

"Alright. So you really think Jared will find me if I join this tournament?" Michael asked.

"I guarantee it." Rugal smiled.

"So we can go?" Kali asked, speaking up for the first time in a while.

"Of course. We have someone standing by watching your Duel Runner in the parking lot at the port." Rugal said. He caught Michael's confused expression and continued. "We docked a few hours ago. Your Duel Runner has already been unloaded." Rugal explained.

"Security didn't give you any trouble?" Kali asked, Michael too remembered Derek saying Security, especially around ports, had been increased.

"Oh, Security doesn't bother us." Rugal smiled, waving the question away. The man in the lab coat returned and passed Michael a small bottle of pills, instructing him when to take them and how often. He thanked the man who promptly left to attend to other business. Slowly, and with Kali's help, Michael stood up and left the room leaving Rugal and the woman, Alyssa, alone.

"We just go down this hallway and we come out on the deck, then we can disembark from there." Kali said as she led Michael down the passageway. They passed several people as they walked. Only three stood out to him, however. A disheveled looking boy who was the same height as Michael with dirty blond hair and a white shirt watched the duo with some form of interest as they passed him. At the end of the hallway were two more people, a large tanned man who was talking to someone whose gender he couldn't determine that was dressed completely in black and wearing large white headphones. Michael didn't pay much attention to any of these people; he was more concerned about where to go now that he was actually in the city.

The view wasn't terribly what he expected. The port didn't look much different from the one in Satellite, but behind it were the tall sky scrapers of Neo Domino City. He felt a twinge of excitement as he look at the buildings. Kali had already started to debark when Michael heard something hit the ground behind him.

Whipping around, Michael saw that it was Jehan. He wasn't entirely sure where the red-haired boy had come from, but the smirk on the boy's face worried Michael as Jehan moved his hand to insert a spell card into his Duel Disk. Michael was confused, but what was even more confusing was what happened next. In an instant, the tanned man he saw in the hallway had Jehan in a headlock and person with the headphones and grabbed Jehan's wrist and yanked it away, stopping the red-haired male from sliding the card into his Duel Disk.

"Let me go! All I have to do is play this card and he's out of my way forever!" Jehan screamed, trying to desperately to slide the card into his Duel Disk, but the headphones owner was apparently stronger than he looked as Jehan made no progress in that endeavor.

"What's going on?" A familiar voice demanded. Rugal emerged from the hallway with Alyssa following him. He sighed once he saw the sight and walked over to Jehan, snatching the card out of his hand. Rugal looked at the card and frowned.

"That was my spot! I'm one of the strongest duelists on this ship! I deserve to go!" Jehan shouted as he continued to struggle against the two restraining him.

"You _were_ going." Rugal sighed.

"…What?" Jehan asked quietly as he stopped struggling.

"Alyssa wasn't going, so she gave her invitation to me to redistribute. I was going to give it to you, but if you were to act like that at the tournament… I'm afraid I'll have to give it someone else now." Rugal sighed as he pulled the white envelope out of his pocket. "You two can let him go now." Rugal said. The two obliged and Jehan fell to his knees as he realized what he'd just done.

"But… but…" Jehan said, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

"Warren? Would you like to take his place?" Rugal offered, holding the invitation out to the tanned man.

"Of course." Warren said. He accepted the envelope, his expression never changing.

"Oh, about these invitations... Do I just show it to them the day of or…?" Michael asked.

"You have to show it to them before the tournament starts. It would be best if you got that done now. Warren, drive down to the Security offices to register yourself and take-" Rugal stopped and stared at Michael for a moment "I apologize, but you've never introduced yourself." Rugal said.

"Michael. Michael Aker." Michael said.

"Ah. My name, as you may have gathered, is Rugal. So yes, all you really have to do is follow Warren and register with Security. They usually host this whole thing to bring the community together." The silver-haired man explained.

"You want me to go to the Security offices? That... that sounds like a horrible idea. The second they pull up my file, this entire thing goes belly up." Michael said flatly.

"I wouldn't worry about," Rugal began. "They have many things to attend to this time of the year. From what I've heard they confirm that your invitation is the real deal, ask for your name, ask you to spell, then send you on your way. They'll have someone else bring up your file."

"_Then_ what? It changes nothing in the long run. They'll just realize it after I'm gone and they can't arrest me immediately." Michael explained.

"If you do get caught, then your face will get out there. Maybe he will still try to seek you out. But otherwise, in a city this large... Just searching on foot, and with what the I can only assume to be the very limited resources you have... Chances of either of you finding each other are slim." Rugal explained. "Besides... perhaps everything will just work out."

"Nghh... okay, I'll give this a shot." Michael nodded.

"Wonderful. Warren, drive down to the Security offices and Michael can follow along on his Duel Runner." Rugal said. The well-dressed man turned and left without another word. Alyssa and the headphones owner following suit, leaving a defeated Jehan by himself as Warren, Michael and Kali debarked. The walked in silence until they came to an area with many parked vehicles. Michael quickly located his Duel Runner, which as Rugal said, had someone watching over it.

"You can come with me." Warren said to Kali as he moved towards one of the cars.

"Alright." Kali said. She waved good-bye to Michael and got into the vehicle with Warren while Michael hopped onto his Duel Runner. In moments the car was speeding down the streets of Neo Domino City with Michael following close behind. In mere minutes they'd arrived at an impressive skyscraper which held the offices of Sector Security.

Warren didn't say a word as he led the group up the stairs and into the building. The lobby was packed, with several people huddled in front of the receptionist's desk. Just before the dread of having to wait in a long line set in, Warren pushed his way through all them with Michael following behind in the path he created. Warren placed his invitation on the desk and the receptionist quickly ripped it open to confirm that it was in fact the real thing.

"Name?" The receptionist asked.

"Warren Barrett." Warren said.

The receptionist asked him to spell it out, as Rugal had said then waved him away saying he was done. Michael stepped up next and gave the receptionist his invitation. After the same process with Warren, the receptionist waved him away as well. Michael pushed his way through the crowd and met up with Kali, who had waited at the edge of the group of people.

"Warren's leaving." Kali said flatly. Sure enough, a glance out of the glass door showed Warren's car speeding off.

"He was just here so we could get registered; he had no reason to help us any further." Michael shrugged.

"He could have at least offered, I mean, we have no money and we're stuck in this city with nowhere to go!" Kali said loudly, tossing up her arms. This garnered a few looks from the people in the lobby, most of who just raised eyebrows at her. One man, he appeared to be about nineteen, maybe twenty, approached the duo however. The man was wearing a forest green suit jacket with a white shirt underneath. He wore wearing matching dress pants and donned a fedora that had a slightly lighter color than the rest of his green clothing.

"Did I hear you say you have nowhere to stay?" The man asked.

"Depends why you're asking." Michael replied.

"My name is Travis Martell, my father owns a prestigious hotel. At least one of you made it into the tournament, right? We would be happy to offer you a room. Hosting contestants for the Fortune Cup would only boost our reputation." Travis explained.

"So you'd set us up with a place to stay… just like that?" Michael asked.

"Meals, a place to stay, it will all be yours for as long as you stay in the tournament." Travis nodded.

"I'd… feel a little bad though. If the Fortune Cup is as big of a deal as you're making it out be, I'd just be taking up another taking up the hotels resources when I'm sure you'll be packed with business." Kali admitted.

"Oh, with any luck we'll be overflowing with business." Travis smiled. "But how about this, we have a duel. You win; you don't give this another thought. I win and you can have a part-time job at the hotel during your stay to pay-off whatever it is you would owe." Travis offered.

"That doesn't sound half bad." Kali said, nodding slowly to herself.

"Wonderful, then follow me." Travis said. The fedora wearing duelist led them out of the lobby and part-way down the flight of stairs where there was a decent sized platform. "Don't worry; it's common for people to duel here." Travis said when he saw that Kali looked a little worried about causing an inconvenience for people who might have been coming or going. Michael simply took a seat on one of the steps and waited for the duel to begin.

"Alright, let's get started then." Kali smiled as she activated her duel disk. Travis nodded and did that same.

"Duel!"

**[Kali: 8000 / Travis: 8000]**

"I'll start. Draw!" Kali started. "I activate Wattcine. Every time a Thunder-type monster inflicts Battle Damage, I regain life points equal to the amount of damage dealt. I set three more cards face-down, set one monster in face-down defense position and end my turn." Kali said.

"Hmm… alright. I draw." Travis said. "I summon Evocator Chevalier!

A swordsman in red armor appeared. He wielded a blade in his right hand and his left hand was engulfed in flames. [ATK: 1900]

"Now, Evocator attacks your set monster!" Travis declared.

The red swordsman ran forward and when it was only a few steps away from the set card an explosion went off. Travis covered his eyes with his arm to protect them from explosion and lowered them once it had subsided. As the dust settled, he saw the faint outline of a trap card disappear.

"Widespread Ruin… I'll set three cards face-down and end my turn." Travis said.

"Draw. I activate my face-down Wattcannon!" Kali announced. A large, colorful cannon appeared behind her. "Then I summon Wattsquirrel!"

A red squirrel charged with electricity appeared. Every time it moved tiny sparks flew from its fur. [ATK: 700] As Wattsquirrel appeared, electricity jumped from it to the cannon which fired a star-shaped blast of energy at Travis.

**[Kali: 8000 / Travis: 7400]**

"When I summon a level four or lower Thunder-type monster, Wattcannon will inflict 600 points of damage to you. Next, I attack you directly with Wattsquirrel!" Kali declared.

The little red squirrel ran forward and head-butted Travis in the stomach. As it did this, Wattcine glowed and Kali regained life points.

**[Kali: 8700 / Travis: 6700]**

"But that's not all; Wattsquirrel can attack twice each turn! So attack him again!" Kali said. The red squirrel did exactly that, landing on the ground after its first head-butt and immediately launching a second. Again, Wattcine glowed as the attack connected.

**[Kali: 9400 / Travis: 6000]**

"That ends my turn." Kali finished.

"Draw." Travis said. "Now that the gap in our life points is over 3000, looks like I have to pick up the pace." Travis chuckled. "I activate my set Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your remaining set card!" Travis declared.

A typhoon appeared below Kali's set card and lifted it off the ground, the hologram spinning inside of the typhoon before shattering into several pieces. But everyone watching had gotten a good look at what it had been: Magic Cylinder.

"Now I activate Birthright to revive the Evocator Chevalier resting in my graveyard. Next, I set one more card and now I'll attack Wattsquirrel with Evocator!" Travis announced.

With no traps left, nothing stopped the red swordsman as he flew forward and slashed the red squirrel with its blade. The squirrel exploded into a burst of lightning which flew towards Evocator, the electric current bringing the swordsman down onto one knee.

**[Kali: 8200 / Travis: 6000]**

"After damage calculation the effects of a monster Wattsquirrel battles are negated." Kali explained.

"Well, that won't matter. I tribute Evocator Chevalier to summon Grasschopper!" Travis announced.

A giant mantis appeared, its small green arms ended in two giant curved blades. [ATK: 2350]

"That ends my turn." Travis said.

"I draw. I set one monster. I end." Kali sighed. All she could do at this moment was build up some defense. If Travis attacked the right set card, a solid defense is what she'd have by her next turn.

"Draw. I Gemini Summon Grasschopper!" Travis declared.

"What?" Kali asked. She'd never heard of the term 'Gemini Summon' before. To be honest, Michael hadn't either.

The mantis thrashed violently and let out a piercing cry as a red circle appeared around it. Energy seemed to rise up from the circle, infusing Grasschopper with its power.

"Now, Grasschopper attacks the monster you just set!" Travis declared.

The Insect-type monster moved forward and sliced through the set card. A colorful dragonfly appeared momentarily, before it was replaced by an electric grasshopper in defense position. [DEF: 0] The cannon fired another star-shaped blast due to Watthopper being both level one and a Thunder-type monster.

**[Kali: 8200 / Travis: 5400]**

"When Wattdragonfly is destroyed, I can special summon one Watt monster from my deck. I chose Watthopper." Kali explained. A smile crossed her face. Her other set monster was Watthopper, so when Travis ended his turn she'd flip the one she still had set face-up and have a fairly strong defense.

"Interesting, however… Grasschopper! Cut the rest of her monsters to ribbons!" Travis ordered.

The mantis did exactly that, slicing through the newly summoned electric grasshopper before turning its sights on the girls last set card. It brought its arm down and cut it in half, revealing a second, identical grasshopper.

"But how?" Kali asked, clearly distressed that she'd lost three monsters to Grasschopper.

"After Grasschopper has been Gemini Summoned, it can attack all monsters my opponent controls once each." Travis smirked. "I end my turn."

"I draw." Kali said. She smiled weakly. Swords of Revealing Light. Maybe she could buy some time with this. "I activate Swords of Revealing Light! Then I summon Wattgiraffe!" Kali announced.

Swords of light fell from the sky around Travis's field, the fedora wearing duelist chuckling to himself as this happened. A giraffe charged with electricity appeared. The giraffe's ears were light bulbs and the horns were antenna. [ATK: 1200] Again, electricity flowed from Wattgiraffe to Wattcannon which proceeded to fire a star-shaped blast of energy at Travis.

**[Kali: 8200 / Travis: 4800]**

"Wattgiraffe's effect lets it attack directly." Kali smirked.

Wattgiraffe galloped forward and made an impressive jump over the swords of light, Grasschopper, landing in front of Travis and ramming head-first into the opposing duelist. Wattcine glowed and yet again Kali's life points increased.

**[Kali: 9400 / Travis: 3600]**

"I'm done." Kali stated.

"You're pretty good. You've already widened the gap between our life points to a little less than 6000." Travis remarked. "I summon Gemini Lancer. Then I activate my face-down Gemini Spark! I tribute Gemini Lancer to destroy your Swords of Revealing Light! Then I draw one card. Next, I activate my face-down Birthright to special summon that Gemini Lancer again! Gemini Lancer attacks Wattgiraffe!" Travis grinned.

A fish-human hybrid appeared, wielding two lances that ended in three-trident like prongs. [ATK: 1800] Lancer turned into a bolt of lightning, which struck each and every sword of light, shattering them. Then the monster reappeared again due to Birthright. It lunged forward and speared the giraffe with its lances, the creature releasing a burst of electricity as it exploded.

**[Kali: 8800 / Travis: 3600]**

"Grasschopper attacks directly!" Travis declared. The mantis ran forward and sliced Kali with its bladed arms, screeching triumphantly as it did so.

**[Kali: 6450 / Travis: 3600]**

"I end my turn." Travis finished.

"Draw. I activate Pot of Avarice to return two of my Watthoppers, Wattgiraffe, Wattsquirrel and Wattdragonfly to my deck to draw two cards." Kali said as she did exactly that. A smile crossed the Watt duelists face when she saw what she drew. "I summon Wattcobra."

A red and red electric cobra appeared. The cobra donned a tiny crown and sparks flew from its scales as it hissed at Travis's monsters. [ATK: 1000] Wattcannon fired again, taking away 600 more of Travis's life points.

**[Kali: 6450 / Travis: 3000]**

"I equip Wattcobra with Wattcube. Then I use Wattcube's effect to send it to the graveyard to increase Wattcobra's power by 1000. Then, I attack directly using Wattcobra's effect! Then, using his other effect I can add Watt monster from my deck to my hand whenever it inflicts battle damage." Kali said.

Wattcobra flew forward and chomped down hard on Travis's duel disk, releasing bolts of electricity as it did so. Kali added Wattgiraffe to her hand using Wattcobra's effect. Then Wattcine glowed and Kali gained a whopping 2000 life points.

**[Kali: 8450 / Travis: 1000]**

"That ends my turn." Kali finished. Wattgiraffe would win her the game, all she had do now was hold out long enough to play it.

"Well, let's see if I can't pull something out of my bag of tricks." Travis grinned as he drew his card.

"So you're going to go down fighting?" Kali grinned back.

"Is there any other way to go out?" Travis laughed. "I activate Polymerization to fuse the Blazewing Butterfly and Chthonian Emperor Dragon in my hand together," Travis started as he moved the two cards from his hand to the graveyard. "To summon Superalloy Beast Raptinus from my extra deck!"

A Frankenstein of a dragon appeared. The beast was made from the parts of various other dragons, the stitches visible all across its mismatched bodies. Despite its strange looks, the roar it let out was as powerful as the roar of any regular dragon. [ATK: 2200]

"Next, I tribute Gemini Lancer to summon Gigaplant!" Travis announced.

Gemini Lancer was replaced by a giant plant monster. The creature's red face stood out against its green body. It has six blue eyes and it opened its mouth to let out a powerful roar, revealing rows upon rows of sharp teeth. [ATK: 2200] As this new creature appeared, Raptinus turned its head and bathed the creature in blue flames. Instead of burning up, the flames seemed to energize the Plant-type monster.

"What was that all about?" Kali asked.

"While Raptinus is present of the field, all Gemini monsters are treated as Effect monsters and gain their effects. So now I'll use Gigaplant's effect to revive the Blazewing Butterfly in my graveyard!" Travis declared.

Four vines extended from Gigaplant's body and shot under the ground. Moments later, they pulled up a small insect that had huge, flaming wings. [ATK: 1500] Again, Raptinus bathed the creature in blue fire to grant it its effect.

"Next, I use Blazewing's effect to tribute it to special summon the Chthonian Emperor Dragon in my graveyard and grant it its effect!" Travis declared.

The butterfly wrapped its flaming wings around itself, the flames growing higher and higher until finally a giant dragon burst out from the flames. The beast was mostly black and silver; it shot a jet of flames into the air as it appeared. [ATK: 2400]

"Raptinus, attack Wattcobra with Gemini Stream!" Travis ordered.

The Frankenstein dragon fired another stream of blue flames. Instead of energizing Wattcobra like it had the Gemini monsters, it burnt the electric serpent to ashes.

**[Kali: 8250 / Travis: 1000]**

"Grasschopper, direct attack!" Travis ordered.

The mantis ran forward and sliced Kali with the curved blades on its arms.

**[Kali: 5900 / Travis: 1000]**

"Gigaplant, you're up next!" Travis continued.

Several vines shot out from Gigaplant's body and struck the Watt duelist head on.

**[Kali: 3500 / Travis: 1000]**

"Chthonian Emperor Dragon, attack her directly!" Travis ordered.

The dragon let out a terrifying roar and let out a giant wave of flames that covered Kali's side of the field in its entirety. Oddly enough, the dragon didn't seem to be stopping and only released more flames as the seconds ticked by.

[Kali: 1100 / Travis: 1000]

"When Chthonian Emperor Dragon gained its effect, it gained the ability to attack twice during the Battle Phase. Chthonian Emperor Dragon, end this duel with Imperial Inferno!" Travis commanded.

The flames from the dragons mouth intensified further, Wattcine and Wattcannon shattering as the mighty dragon brought Kali's life points down to 0.

**[Kali: 0 / Travis: 1000]**

"You're stronger than I thought. So I guess its hotel work for me, eh?" Kali asked with a weak smile.

"Of course I am. You have to be strong to participate in the Fortune Cup." Travis chuckled.

"You're participating?" Michael asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yessir. Oh, you don't have to worry about the hotel work by the way. I just offered that to rope you into a duel. I was rather bored and had time to kill, you see. Besides, we can't have employees with no training during one of the biggest rushes of the year." Travis said.

"But-" Kali started.

"Don't worry about! We make more than enough money to cover one extra person. Here, take my card." Travis said as he passed a business card to Michael. "I'll see you during the tournament." Travis smiled. Michael accepted the card and Travis wandered off, whistling a joyful tune.

"So, are you nervous?" Kali asked.

"About what?" Michael asked back.

"Well, we only get to stay in the hotel as long as you stay in the tournament. You'll be going up against strong guys like that, think you can handle it?" Kali asked.

"Guess I'll have to." Michael shrugged.

"Well, let's get a move on then. I want to see what else the city has to offer!" Kali said as she ran down the rest of the stairs.

"But we have no money!" Michael protested.

"Who cares?" Kali called from the bottom of the flight of stairs. Michael gave a weak smile and sighed. As long as she understood they had absolutely no money to spend it wouldn't be that bad.

Well, he hoped so anyways.

* * *

><p>This chapter came out a little longer than I expected, but hey, I had to get things done. Also, since this going up on Christmas day I'd like to wish all my readers some happy holidays!<p> 


	7. Chapter 7: Night Assailant

Night time had fallen over the city. At the top floor of the Sector Security headquarters, the Director sat behind his desk and scribbled away at some last minute paperwork for the Fortune Cup. The man's hair was a dark brown with visible streaks of grey in it. He wore a nice white shirt and black jeans. The office was almost bare with only his desk, along the computer, lamp and phone which sat on it, and two plastic plants he kept in the corners to improve the atmosphere. Also next to his desk was a small waste bin filled with Kleenex. The man looked up at the sound of the door opening.

"Director Reynar, two people have registered using the invitations you sent out to the Arcadia Movement." A woman said as she poked her head in. She had long, golden locks of curly hair.

"Do you have their files?" Reynar asked. The woman nodded and approached the desk, sliding the two files onto it.

"Neither Rugal nor Alyssa ended up signing up. The file on top is what you'd expect, but the one on the bottom is… interesting." The woman said.

"Thank you, Christine." Reynar said. He knew the woman quite well; they were comfortable using each other's first names in the work place. He flipped through the top file and Christine confirmed what he'd suspected. It was uninteresting. The contestant, Warren Barrett, was a known member of the Arcadia Movement. Reynar tossed the file aside and picked up the next one.

Now this was interesting. The contestants name was Michael Aker. The first thing that surprised him was that he had no known connection to the Arcadia Movement. The second was that he was supposed to be in Satellite. There was no official record of how he got from there to here, but the culprit was clear if he used one of _those_ invitations to sign up.

"See what I mean?" Christine asked.

"I do. So Rugal has been harvesting duelists from Satellite again? Even if he was, why this kid? Why not that little spitfire he has by his side? Jehan, I think his name is?" Reynar asked.

"I have no idea." Christine admitted.

"More importantly, if Rugal did go to Satellite then what's Everest doing?" Reynar grumbled. The man picked up the phone dialed a number, someone picking up almost immediately on the other end.

"Everest."

"Reynar?"

"Explain to me how a duelist who has no official record of leaving Satellite is now participating in the Fortune Cup." Reynar growled.

"But… We tightened up security everywhere, just like you said!" Everest said.

"…I suppose it's too late now. But I want you to get over here as soon as possible." Reynar sighed.

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Neither Reynar nor Alyssa used their invitations. Michael Aker isn't supposed to be here. We can't do anything about the other person who entered using invitation but we can at least get him out of there." Reynar explained.

"You want me to arrest him?"

"Arrest Aker and then you can take his place in the tournament."

"Really? Well, that's pretty nice of you. " Everest said, cheer slipping into his voice.

"Whatever you say. Just make sure you're here before the tournament day."

"Will do."

"Have a good night."

"You too."

Reynar hung up the phone and leaned back into his chair. The older man sighed and rubbed his face with some Kleenex he kept in his top drawer. He looked at Christine and shook his head slowly.

"I just don't see why he'd send this kid…" Reynar muttered.

"If you take a closer look at the file it says he's recently checked into Mr. Martell's hotel." Christine pointed out.

"In all the years we've held the Fortune Cup, Rugal was never so careless with his entrants to let them do something like that." Reynar said, picking up the file again. Indeed, it was listed that he'd checked into the aforementioned hotel. He gritted his teeth and picked up the phone again, quickly dialling a new number.

"Rugal." Reynar said as soon as he heard someone pick up.

"Reynar? Still alive?" Rugal chuckled on the other end.

"What's the deal with Michael Aker? Why didn't you send Jehan?" Reynar asked.

"I don't need anyone aside from Warren. Aker is useless to me; he possesses no ability I need to concern myself with. You know I only pick duelists from the cream of the crop. I gave the invitation to him out of pity." Rugal chuckled.

"Putting all your eggs in one basket, eh? Pretty bold." Reynar said.

"My friend, the title of King is as good ours. Now, if you excuse me, I have other things to do." Rugal said, hanging up the phone. Reynar slammed the phone down and ran his fingers through his hair and looked up at Christine.

"He says Aker has nothing to do with him. I don't know if I buy it coming from him though." Reynar sighed.

"How about I call Tabitha? Maybe she can get his motives out of him." Christine offered.

Before Reynar could respond, he started to cough violently. The older man held the some more Kleenex in front of his mouth as he coughed into them. He pulled them away, the sight of blood greeting him. He simply nodded to Christine and tossed the Kleenex out after wiping his mouth with them.

"Tell her I want her to head out immediately. Then to return here and deliver a full report." Reynar ordered.

"Will there be anything else?" Christine asked. Reynar merely shook his head and the blonde left the older man to sit alone in the office.

_Later on…_

Michael was walking back towards his hotel room. As Travis had said, it was very nice room. But he was concerned about what he would do if he lost in the tournament, especially if it was in the first round. This thought process had made him restless, so he'd walked down to the ground floor of the hotel and then walked back up to his room on the 23rd floor in hopes of tiring himself out. Thankfully, it had worked and he could feel the urge to sleep tugging away at his conscious.

There was a woman leaning against the wall in the hallway. She had long black hair that went down to about halfway down her back and was wearing a black coat and dark purple skirt. Michael only started to pay attention to her when as he passed her, her hand flew into his pocket.

"What the hell?" Michael shouted, whipping around to face her. The woman pulled her hand out and jumped backwards.

"Catch me if you can." The woman giggled, jingling the keys she'd taken from his pocket. Michael grimaced, seeing she had not only grabbed his room key but also the key to his Duel Runner. The woman turned and ran down the hallway and into the stairwell, Michael having no choice but to give chase.

Michael chased her up several flights of stairs until they finally came to the roof. Michael was tired and the run hadn't helped, plus the fact that the woman was wearing dark colors had her difficult to distinguish in the darkness of the night. But his eyes slowly adjusted and he managed to spot her standing at the edge of the roof, holding both of the keys over the edge.

"Who are you and what the hell do you want?" An exasperated Michael asked.

"My name is Tabitha. Why are you here?" Tabitha asked.

"How did you know I'm not from around here?" Michael asked, becoming increasingly wary of this girl.

"It doesn't matter. Now, why are you here and why are you in the Fortune Cup?" Tabitha asked.

"I'm looking for someone, his name is Jared Valcrist. I was told if I joined the Fortune Cup he'd seek me out." Michael explained.

"You're lying!" Tabitha shouted.

"I'm not!" Michael shouted back.

"Rugal wouldn't just give you an invitation and expect nothing in return!" Tabitha shouted.

"He did though!"

"If you keep lying, you're never getting these back." Tabitha growled, waving the keys over the edge.

"Please, I'm not lying…" Michael pleaded.

"Let's duel then. If you win, I'll believe you. If you lose, you get one last chance to tell me why you're here before these go overboard." Tabitha said.

"Alright." Michael said, activating his duel disk. Tabitha did the same, taking a few steps away from the edge of the roof.

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000 / Tabitha: 8000]**

"I'll begin!" Tabitha said, drawing five cards and one more for her turn. "I summon Karakuri Soldier mdl 236 'Nisamu'!" Tabitha declared.

A wooden puppet appeared in front of her. The puppet had a single, large red-eye and a string of shide around its waist. The puppet wielded what looked like a length of bamboo as a spear. [ATK: 1400]

"I set one card face-down, and then I activate Karakuri Anatomy. Each time a Karakuri monster changes its battle position, this card gains one counter to a maximum of two counters. That ends my turn." Tabitha finished as a yellow scroll appeared behind Nisamu.

"Draw. I summon Genex Undine. Then I send another Undine from my deck to the graveyard to add Genex Controller to my hand," Michael started. "Then I activate Double Summon to summon Genex Controller."

Genex Undine appeared, a puddle of water appearing next to it which Genex Controller rose out of. [ATK: 1200] [ATK: 1400]

"I'm tuning my level three Genex Controller to my level three Genex Undine!" Michael said, raising his hand up into the air. "The controller of the elements calls forth the bounty of the ocean! The power of the ocean to both give and take life is embodied in this new entity! Synchro Summon! Rise, Hydro Genex!" Michael chanted.

An upgraded version of Genex Undine rose up from a small pool of water. The upgraded version had fewer liquid-containing spheres on its body, only having them on its shoulders and elbows. The monster wielded a spear that ended in a similar green orb filled with water and on the monsters back was a strange device with a larger green sphere which had tubes connecting it to all of the other spheres. [ATK: 2300]

"Now, Hydro Genex attacks Nisamu!" Michael declared.

The blue robot flew forward and struck the puppet monster who turned blue and raised its spear in an attempt to defend itself which ultimately failed, the puppet monster shattering from the force of the strike. As all this happened, the scroll that was behind Nisamu unravelled a little.

"When Hydro Genex destroys a monster by battle, I gain life points equal to the attack of the destroyed monster." Michael smirked.

**[Michael: 9400 / Tabitha: 8000]**

"Thankfully my Karakuri monsters are changed to defense mode when they're attacked, so I lost no life points from that battle. Also, since it was Nisamu who was destroyed, I can special summon one level four or lower Karakuri monster from my deck. I choose… Karakuri Komachi mdl 224 'Ninishi'." Tabitha chuckled.

A puppet in a green kimono with pink flowers on it appeared. The wooden puppet had three green eyes and its hair was done up in a bun with a gear visible behind it. [ATK: 0]

"I set one card face-down. My turn is over." Michael finished.

"Draw. First, I switch Ninishi to defense mode. This'll give Karakuri Anatomy another counter. Then, I summon Karakuri Ninja mdl 919 'Kuick' and Karakuri Watchdog mdl 313 'Saizan'." Tabitha started.

Ninishi crouched down, the Karakuri Anatomy scroll unraveling further. A mechanical dog with three red eyes and two cannons mounted on its back appeared, growling menacingly at Michael. [ATK: 600] Next to Saizan, a new mechanized puppet with a long black pony tail appeared. This one wore a purple robe, with a string of shide around its waist, and had two red eyes. In one hand the creature wielded a small knife and in the other it held a kunai. [ATK: 1700]

"A special effect?" Michael guessed.

"You got it. Ninishi lets me normal summon or set another Karakuri in addition to my first normal summon or set. Next, I send Karakuri Anatomy to the graveyard to draw two cards since it has two counters on it. Then, I'll play Karakuri Showdown Castle." Tabitha grinned. A huge Japanese styled castle rose up behind Tabitha from over the edge of the hotels roof.

"What does that do?" Michael asked, admiring the castle.

"I'll show you. Saizan, attack Hydro Genex!" Tabitha commanded, pointing to the blue monster.

Saizan obeyed and lunged at the blue robot. Lightning struck behind the castle and Hydro Genex dropped down to one knee, assuming a defensive position. [DEF: 1800] Even in defense mode the aquatic robot was still able to fend off Saizans attack, knocking the robotic dog back to Tabitha's side of the field.

**[Michael: 9400 / Tabitha: 6800]**

"What was the point of that?" Michael asked. He already deducted that Karakuri Castle is what caused his monster to switch into defense mode, but even with Hydro Genex in defense mode it was still strong enough to fend off the attacks of both Kuick and Saizan.

"Well, the first was my using the effect of my castle to change the battle position of a monster a Karakuri monster battles. Also, Karakuri monsters are special. If they're in attack position, they must battle. But Saizan has a special ability," Tabitha said, a grin creeping over her face. "When I take battle damage from a battle involving Saizan, all Karakuri monsters on my field gain 800 attack and defense points until the End Phase."

"800? Damn it." Michael cursed. Kuick would be able to destroy Hydro Genex now.

Saizan began to bark loudly. This somehow granted Kuick a bright green aura, along with additional 800 attack points. [ATK: 1700 - 2500]

"Kuick, destroy Hydro Genex!" Tabitha commanded.

Kuick leapt into the air above Hydro Genex, lightning striking behind the castle as Hydro Genex rose up to fight off the attacker. [ATK: 2300] As Kuick descended towards her target, she disappeared. Hydro Genex looked around; not realizing Kuick was now behind him. The female looking puppet sliced the tubes on Hydro Genex back with the knife and delivered the final blow with the kunai, the blue robot exploding into several holographic pieces.

**[Michael: 9200 / Tabitha: 6800]**

"But the fun doesn't end there, when Kuick destroys a monster through battle I can special summon a level four or lower Karakuri monster from my graveyard in defense position. Since I only have one option, I pick Nisamu!" Tabitha grinned.

Kuick snapped her fingers and in a puff of smoke, the mechanical puppet soldier was next to her, crouched down and ready to defend itself. [DEF: 200]

"That ends my turn." Tabitha finished.

"Draw." Michael said. He nodded slowly at his draw, his gaze shifting from it to Tabitha. "Who put you up to all of this?" Michael asked.

"My employer." Tabitha said guardedly.

"But why? Who cares so deeply about why I'm here or why I'm participating in the Fortune Cup? Is it really so unbelievable that Rugal gave me his invitation to help me?" Michael asked.

"You have no idea what kind of man Rugal is!" Tabitha spat. "My employer will do anything to see Rugal's plans crushed, so if you're in league with him in any way it's my job to crush you!"

"But I'm not! He told me nothing! I don't even his last name or where I could find him!" Michael shouted.

"He takes the Fortune Cup very seriously! He wouldn't just toss away one of his invitations for no reason!" Tabitha shot back.

"I swear he-"

"Play your damn card or I'll toss these right now!" Tabitha screamed clenching the keys in her fist.

"Fine! I summon R-Genex Overseer and use his effect to special summon Genex Ally Solid from my hand." Michael grumbled. "Then I activate Descending Lost Star to bring back Hydro Genex. Then I'll use Synchro Defuse to split Hydro Genex back into Genex Undine and Genex Controller."

R-Genex Overseer appeared on its hovercraft. [ATK: 200] Raising its arms, the blue form of Genex Ally Solid dropped out from a portal created by Overseer. [ATK: 500] Simultaneously, something crashed onto the roof from above. The smoke cleared, revealing Hydro Genex whose defense dropped to zero as it crossed its arms over its chest. [DEF: 0] The Synchro monster split apart seconds later, Genex Controller [ATK: 1400] and Genex Undine [ATK: 1200] taking its place.

"Using Solid's effect, I send Genex Undine to the graveyard to draw two cards." Michael continued. "Next, I activate Mind Control to take control of Kuick!"

"What a nuisance." Tabitha grumbled.

"I tune my level two R-Genex Overseer to my level two Genex Ally Solid and level four Karakuri Ninja 'Kuick'!" Michael said. Overseer dissolved into two green synchro gates, the other two monsters becoming a total of six white stars. "Our hearts beat as one, opening the path to a new horizon! The warrior who out speeds all! Synchro Summon! Ride on, Genex Ally Axel!" Michael chanted.

The silver Synchro monster burst from the synchro gates, landing next to Genex Controller and grunting loudly. [ATK: 2600]

"Summon as many machines as you want, they won't break through my defenses." Tabitha sneered.

"I'll show you just what my monsters are capable of." Michael said, sliding the last card he held into his duel disk. "I activate Overclock!"

"Overclock?" Tabitha asked, raising an eyebrow.

"For 1000 life points, one Machine monster on my side of the field can attack all monsters my opponent controls once each." Michael smirked.

**[Michael: 8200 / Tabitha: 6800]**

"Axel, destroy all of her monsters!" Michael shouted.

Axel flew forward, kicking Saizan into the air where it shattered into several pieces. The Synchro monster turned and punched Nisamu through the chest, turning sharply and delivering a kick to Ninishi's torso.

"Nisamu lets me special summon another Karakuri. Not that it'll do any good against that monster of yours..." Tabitha sighed as she reached for her deck.

"Actually, you don't. Any monster destroyed by a monster enhanced with Overclock has its effect negated." Michael smirked.

"Well, no deck thinning for me then. Thankfully, all my Karakuri monsters were either in defense position or changed to defense position, so that attack was fruitless." Tabitha chuckled.

"Genex Controller, attack her directly!" Michael commanded.

The monster let out a piercing screech, causing Tabitha to slam her hands over her ears.

**[Michael: 8200 / Tabitha: 5400]**

"Are you finished yet?" Tabitha asked.

"I have no more cards to play. Your move." Michael said.

"Draw. I set one card face-down and end my turn." Tabitha said.

"That's it?" Michael said.

"That's all I need to do. Your weak monsters can't finish me off anyway." Tabitha laughed.

"Draw. I summon Genex Blastfan. Now, I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level four Genex Blastfan." Michael started. "The controller of the elements calls forth the power of the blistering winds! Let your gales guide the path to victory! Synchro Summon! Absolute gales, arise, Windmill Genex!" He chanted.

An upgraded version of Blastfan appeared. The new green monster was bulkier all round with thick arms and legs and a huge fan in the center of its chest. The robot had two yellow eyes and bellowed loudly, the fan on its chest spinning faster. [ATK: 2000 - 2600]

"It gained 600 attack points?" Tabitha asked.

"It gains 300 for each face-down spell or trap card on the field, so you just powered up my monster." Michael smirked.

"Pfft. It doesn't matter. Like I said, your monsters are too weak. Their totals still only add up to 5200. I have 5400 life points." Tabitha smirked back.

"Windmill Genex! Direct attack!" Michael commanded with frustration clear in his voice.

The green robot complied, the fan on its chest spinning even faster as it sent a powerful windstorm towards the black-haired duelist. To Michael's surprise, the girl was actually being pushed backwards by the attack.

**[Michael: 8200 / Tabitha: 2800]**

"Oh no, however will I turn the tables? My opponent used up all his cards to bring out two monsters! How can I possibly recover?" Tabitha mocked as she fanned herself with the three cards left in her hand.

"Axel!" Michael roared. The silver monster charged forward, delivering a kick to the girls' side, which to Michael's horror, knocked the girl off balance.

**[Michael: 8200 / Tabitha: 200]**

"Are you okay?" Michael asked.

"Interesting…" Tabitha mused. Thankfully the girl didn't appear to be hurt.

"I end my turn." Michael said.

"Draw. I summon Karakuri Strategist mdl 248 'Nishipachi'. His effect lets me change the battle position of one monster. I change Windmill Genex to defense mode. Then, I activate Monster Reborn to revive Kuick!" Tabitha started.

A mechanized puppet that was sitting cross-legged appeared in front of Tabitha. Raising its hand, it pointed at Windmill Genex at the green robot crouched down and turned blue. [ATK: 500] [DEF: 1600] Next to the strategist, Kuick appeared again, brandishing both her knife and kunai. [ATK: 1700]

"Now I'll use Machine Duplication to special summon two more Nishipachi from my deck." Tabitha grinned.

Two more strategists appeared. One changed Windmill Genex back into attack mode [ATK: 2600] while the other changed the original Nishipachi into defense position. [DEF: 1600]

"The requirements have been fulfilled, so now I active my Karakuri Trick House! When the battle position of a Karakuri monster is changed, I can destroy one card! I destroy Axel!" Tabitha shouted.

The silver Synchro monster exploded into several holographic shards much to Michael's dismay. Not only that, but with one fewer face-down card Windmill Genex power dropped to 2300.

"I tune my level three Nishipachi to my level four Kuick!" Tabitha said, raising her hand into the air. "The ancient shogun continues to drive back his foes as rivers dry and mountains crumble! Synchro Summon! The timeless general, Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 Burei!" Tabitha chanted.

The ancient shogun appeared; wearing ancient armor and a tattered red cape appeared. [ATK: 2600] Burei raised the Bansho fan it held and another monster appeared in a gust of wind. The new mechanized puppet wielded a cross-shaped spear and had a single large red eye. [ATK: 2100]

"Another monster?" Michael groaned.

"When Burei is Synchro Summoned, I can special summon a Karakuri monster form my deck. I chose Karakuri Muso mdl 818 'Haipa'." Tabitha smirked.

"I can still hold out though!" Michael countered.

"No, you really can't. Now, I tune the level three Nishipachi and the level four Haipa!" Tabitha grinned, raising her hand again. "The ancient shogun continues to drive back his foes as rivers dry and mountains crumble! Synchro Summon! The timeless general, Karakuri Shogun mdl 00 Burei!" Tabitha chanted.

A shogun identical to the first one appeared. [ATK: 2600] Raising its Bansho fan, a new puppet appeared. This one was different from the others. It wore a black cloak and had three red eyes, its weapons consisting of a small katana and a chakram. [ATK: 2200]

"It doesn't end there! I tune the level three Nishipachi to the level five Nanashick!" Tabitha announced

"Another Synchro Summon?" Michael asked in disbelief.

"In times of crisis the true warlord descends onto the battlefield! None shall stand before his blades, tempered through the heat of a thousand years of battle! Synchro Summon! The legendary general, Karakuri Steel Shogun mdl 00X Bureido!" Tabitha chanted.

Between the two Burei, Bureido appeared as lightning struck behind the castle. [ATK: 2800] The new shogun easily towered above the other two, wearing a red coat with his spiked armor visible underneath. Crossing both of his blades, Bureido roared as a bolt of lightning struck Tabitha's field, another Haipa appearing from it. [ATK: 2100]

"Damn it…" Michael growled. Doing some quick math, he realized that even if her last face-down card was activated, as long as it didn't destroy Windmill Genex, he would hang on with 100 life points.

"Now I activate my last face-down card! Runaway Karakuri! This grants Bureido 1000 extra attack, but his effect is negated." Tabitha said.

The steel shogun gained a bright blue aura, a low, mechanical growl escaping from its mouth as its power increased. [ATK: 2800 - 3800] Also, with one less set card, this meant that Windmill Genex was going to get even weaker. Slowly, the fan on the Machine-type monsters torso slowed to a halt as all of its recently gained power left its body. [ATK: 2300 - 2000]

"No…" Michael breathed.

"Haipa! Destroy Windmill Genex!" Tabitha commanded.

The monster threw its cross-shaped spear at Windmill, destroying the further weakened monster.

**[Michael: 8100 / Tabitha: 200]**

"Your field is empty! Go, Burei!" Tabitha commanded.

Both Burei whipped their Bansho fans, summoning a powerful windstorm which took off a whopping 5200 life points from Michael. The Genex duelist fell to his knees, accepting his fate.

**[Michael: 2900 / Tabitha: 200]**

"Bureido! Finish this duel!" Tabitha ordered.

Bureido raised one of its swords, lightning striking it and charging it with energy. With a mighty cry, the steel shogun brought its sword down and ended the duel, leaving the defeated duelist on his knees as all the holograms faded.

**[Michael: 0 / Tabitha: 200]**

"Now, talk. Why are you here or what kind deal did you take with Rugal?" Tabitha asked. The black-haired duelist moved to stand at the edge of the rooftop again, jingling the keys over the side.

"I told you… there was no deal… I'm here to find my friend Jared… Please, just don't toss them." Michael pleaded, reaching out towards her desperately.

"…You're really telling the truth?" Tabitha asked after a moment.

"I am, I swear." Michael said, slowly pulling himself into a standing position.

"Alright, your side of the deal is fulfilled." Tabitha said, tossing the two sets of keys at Michael. The brown-haired boy fumbled to catch them as Tabitha brushed past him and entered the stairwell.

Michael stood on the roof for a few minutes afterwards, taking in all that happened. The feeling of tiredness from before was tugging him, so he couldn't give as much of his attention to the thought of someone employing a duelist like Tabitha to find out why he was here. He'd give more though to it in the morning; all he wanted to do now was collapse into a bed and go to sleep.

_Later on..._

Reynar was looking through a series of cards he had laid out on his desk. He sighed after staring at them, reaching out to collect them when the door opened. Tabitha entered the room and moved to stand in front of Reynar's deck with an odd expression on his face.

"Well?" Reynar asked.

"He has some ability, but it's negligible. Basically he can just add some force to the impacts; even then it's not that much. Pretty much it's the amount of force anyone can add if you get them riled up. " Tabitha shrugged.

"Could he have been holding back?" Reynar asked.

"Unlikely. Even after all my taunting, he got pretty riled up but nothing really happened. I beat him though, but you better believe he put up one hell of a fight, and since he seemed to be telling the truth… or he was just really devoted to that lie. By the way, I think you'll be pretty interested in his reason for being here." Tabitha said, a smile spreading across her lips.

"Oh?"

"You know that guy who just showed up in our system one day after getting sent to Facility? Jared Valerie or something? The guy said if he participated in the tournament Jared would see it and they could find each other." Tabitha explained.

"How interesting…" Reynar sat back in his chair, a thoughtful expression spreading over his face.

"I know. I'd suggest keeping an eye on him, though. But it isn't my business and it's late, so I'm leaving." Tabitha said. The black-haired girl left without another word.

"Michael Aker and Jared Valcrist…" Reynar said as he leaned back in his chair again. "I wonder if you'll spice this game of ours up."

* * *

><p>Overclock<p>

Normal Spell

Pay 1000 Life Points. Select 1 Machine-Type monster on your side of the field. During this turn, only the selected monster can attack and it attacks all monsters on your opponent's side of the field once each. The effects of Effect Monsters destroyed by this attack(s) are not activated.

* * *

><p>Yeah, Overclock is basically Diffusion Wave-Motion for Machines. I tried to find an alternative, but there really was no other card that could what I needed done done. So I had to settle for ripping off Diffusion Wave-Motion with his card. The next chapter will probably be the start of the Fortune Cup since I can't think of a legitimate reason to have another duel before then and if I just shoehorned one in it would bog the pacing down more than I already have. See you all next time!<p> 


	8. Chapter 8: Blaze Accelerator

The day of the Fortune Cup arrived quickly. It turned out the Fortune Cup was to be held three days after they had arrived. The first day passed without much event, Michael and Kali simply lounging around in the hotel room and relaxing for the better parts of the day.

The second day, however, they decided to go for a walk. They had no money to spend, but they figured they should at least get a basic layout of the area. As they walked, Michael decided to ask a question that had been bothering him for the past two days. As they were passing through a park, he decided the time was right.

"So... why _did_ you come with me?" Michael asked.

"Oh... no real reason." Kali replied quietly.

"No real reason? You left everything you knew behind to come with me to find someone you've never met for no real reason?" Michael asked. The Genex duelist stopped walking, the Watt duelist doing the same a little bit ahead of him.

"Well... I don't know, I guess there was nothing for me back there." Kali replied, shifting around uncomfortably.

"Did you have family back there?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Didn't you?" She countered.

"Touché. But my Dad and I never really talked much. He never liked how non-confrontational I was." Michael sighed.

"Ahh... well, I'd really rather not talk about it right now." Kali said quietly. Michael simply nodded, and the two continued their walk.

The third day was very similar to the first. Except for the fact that Michael was going over his deck for tomorrow, Kali helping him fix it up a little. The many cards of his deck were spread out over one of the beds, Kali and Michael standing over them.

"Well... that's quite the array of cards." Kali noted.

"Yeah. I guess I'm not a very good deck builder. I can just never decide what to remove." Michael laughed. "I can never bring myself to take out any of the Genex monsters though. I kinda feel like it would be dishonouring the deck Jared gave me."

"I'm sure he wouldn't mind you improving on it." Kali said.

Michael just smiled and began to sort through the non-Genex cards, Kali sighing and shaking her head.

_The next day..._

As Michael approached the stadium, even from a distance he could see people were lining up by the thousands to get in. He drove around to the side of the building, where two security guards stood in front of a garage door. Michael stopped in front of them both, giving them the once over. The male on the left didn't stick out to him particularly, but he instantly recognized the face of the woman on the right. It was Tabitha.

"You…" Michael whispered.

"Name?" The male asked.

"Michael Aker." Michael replied, still staring at Tabitha.

"He's on the list." Tabitha said. The male, who had started to flip through the pages attached to the clipboard he was holding, nodded and slammed the button behind him. The large garage door slowly opened, revealing the mostly empty garage inside.

"So if you're here then that means your employer is-" Michael started.

"Head on in, sir." Tabitha said, motioning for him to go through the opened garage door. Michael glared at Tabitha but proceeded in, the door sliding down behind him.

The garage had another shut door at the end of it, with four or so other Duel Runners parked in various spaces. Michael parked his and headed up the stairs, ending up in what appeared to a waiting room where several other contestants stood. Travis was already there, along with Warren. But the other faces were all unfamiliar to him. Why shouldn't they be? He didn't live in the city. He wasn't one of these people.

"Travis. Thanks again for getting Kali a seat." Michael said, approaching the Gemini duelist who still donned his green fedora. He gave another glance around the room, a large monitor was hanging on the west wall and there were a few couches up against the walls but no one appeared to be using them as everyone present was standing.

"Think nothing of it. If anything, Tasha will be glad to have someone to talk with." Travis smiled.

"Tasha?" Michael asked.

"Oh, you two haven't met. She's my girlfriend and around the same age as your friend, so with any luck the two of them will get along." Travis explained. Michael nodded and two exchanged small talk while looking over the rest of the contestants.

Warren was leaning against the wall, the tall duelist was wearing a black muscle shirt, a grey belt and dark brown cargo pants. Standing in the corner of the room was a duelist wearing a black and red jacket, with a black shirt underneath which had a white logo of some brand Michael couldn't recognize on it. The boys black hair was hanging over his eyes, but he didn't seem to mind. There was a girl with platinum blonde hair who was trying to find someone to talk to, but everyone else had distanced themselves from the center of the room leaving her to wander around almost aimlessly.

A new contestant entered the lobby, this one being a male slightly shorter than Michael with messy brown hair who was wearing a long-sleeved forest green shirt and light brown carpenter pants. Everyone glanced at the new arrival, the only person to show any form of emotion at the new arrival was Warren. The arrival of this new duelist visibly agitated Warren as the larger man pushed himself off the wall and approached the messy brown-haired duelist.

"You!" Warren shouted, punching the duelist in the jaw and sending him sprawling to the ground. The new arrival quickly recovered, leaping to his feet and jumping backwards to put some distance between him and Warren.

"How dare you show your face in front of me!" Warren bellowed.

"Of all the people in this tournament, why did you have to be here?" The new arrival spat, wiping his mouth.

"Whoa, whoa, calm down here guys." Travis said, moving to stand between the two. "What seems to be the problem here?" He asked look at each duelist in turn.

"This guy is the problem." Warren said, jabbing a finger into the brown-haired boy's chest. "I went to same Academy as him. He cheated at everything. But he was Mr. Popular and always got away with it because no would believe me. Even during the Graduation duel! I saw it! He had a card in his sleeve! He added it to his hand so quickly, with the skill of a seasoned cheater, but I saw it!" Warren explained very loudly, drawing the attention of the few people who hadn't been watching to them.

"He cheated?" Travis repeated.

"Yes! Gale Brenner, I'd never forget this guy's face. I even confronted him after I was booed for 'falsely' accusing him of cheating! He even admitted it just to taunt me!" Warren shouted. The eyes focused on Gale all turned into hard glares.

"I've changed my ways." Gale said coldly. The brown-haired duelist moved over to the opposite side of the room and stood near the boy in the black and red jacket. They didn't seem to be conversing, but rather just tolerating the others presence.

Warren returned to his wall in a huff and Travis moved back to stand with Michael. The two chatted away for a bit. Then monitor turned on about 15 minutes later, once two more arrivals had shown up.

The announcer was spouting off some speech about the King and how everyone here today was aiming for the goal of taking his spot and claiming the title for himself. Michael didn't pay much attention to the screen; he was still sizing up the competition. He focused mainly on the ones whose names he knew, along with the quiet boy in the corner. His attention was drawn to the screen when the crowd burst into thunderous applause, Michael only catching a glimpse of the King's Duel Runner as it exited the stadium.

The King had called several of his signature monsters out, none of which Michael recognized. They all faded away as the King exited, the MC moving to the center of the large platform in the middle of the track. Another speech followed in which he got the crowd excited for the duels to come.

"Now, let's meet the eight duelists who seek to take the crown for themselves!" The announcer announced.

"Alright, let's go!" A security guard who was standing in the doorway shouted. As they all passed by him, they were given instructions to do one lap around the track, dismount, and then stand in a line. Simple enough.

Michael headed into the garage below and hopped onto his Duel Runner, heading out through the door which had been closed when he came in earlier. He was the fourth one out, behind Warren, a girl whose name he didn't know, and Travis. He followed their lead as the crowd burst into thunderous applause at the sight of the eight contestants. The one lap was completed and Michael drove the platform in the center of the track and dismounted, moving to stand next to Travis.

_Elsewhere…_

Everest and Reynar stood in the hallway of another entrance to the stadium, the one the King had left through. Everest was dressed in full uniform, complete with helmet and had his Duel Runner leaning up against the wall next to him. Reynar was dressed in a nice, grey suit since he would have to address the crowd at some point to announce when the days matches had come to an end and thank them for coming.

"So, you just want me to arrest him?" Everest asked.

"No… not anymore." Reynar said, slowly shaking his head.

"What? Then why did you bother dragging me out here?" Everest asked, agitation seeping into his voice.

"I want you duel to him." Reynar said.

"Eh? Why not just arrest him?" Everest asked.

"King is a title everyone can strive to attain. Even if he is from Satellite, if we were to remove a contestant and replace him with a Security Officer without even giving the contestant a chance to defend himself in a duel, it would undermine the ideal that anyone can become King. Besides, aren't you the least bit interested in what someone like him might be able to accomplish in a tournament like this?" Reynar explained.

"Not really, no. If he's anything his buddies he'll go down as easily as house of cards." Everest admitted. A brief silence settled over the two. "So… do you want me to go out there now?"

"Let me get up to the stadium office, I'll contact you then. If you win, you can select who you want to take his place. Be it you or a friend or a random person, the choice is yours." Reynar said, already walking off. Everest simply nodded in response and looked out of the hall to the eight contestants.

_Back in the Stadium…_

"These are our eight contestants ladies and gentlemen!" The MC announced a few minutes later once everyone had finished their lap. Several floating screens appeared in front of the stands so the audience could get a better look at everyone's faces. The MC moved to stand in front of the group and for the first time Michael got a good look at him. He was a tall, skinny man wearing a red suit jacket with an outrageous hairdo which stuck out roughly a foot in front his head.

"These are out eight contestants!" The MC announced, gesturing to the eight duelists as the screens showed each of their faces in turn. "From left to right we have…"

"Warren Barrett!" The screen changed, showing Warren's face, his mouth in a hard scowl.

"Lynda Sterling!" The cute face of the girl with long, straight blonde hair appeared.

"Travis Martell!" The screen focused on Travis, the duelist smiling and tipping his fedora forward slightly.

"Michael Aker!" The screen showed Michael's face, and he was suddenly very glad Rugal had given him that patch to cover up his mark.

"Savanna Lynwood!" The face of a woman with bright red hair appeared. Michael was surprised he had noticed due to her hair color, but hadn't really gotten a good look at her due to her being the last arrival.

"Demetri Bure!" The face of the boy who had stayed in the corner appeared, a blank expression on his face and his hair still covering his eyes.

"Winona Weaver!" The screen changed to show the face of a girl with platinum blonde hair wearing a light blue wool hat.

"Gale Brenner!" The last face shown was that of Gale, the male wearing a bored expression on his face.

"Now, let's go to the randomizer to see who is facing who!" The MC announced, pointing to the large screen in the stadium. Headshots of all the duelists began to randomize at the bottom of the tournament tree, the eyes of everyone fixed on it waiting for it to stop.

"HOLD IT!" A voice boomed.

_No… he couldn't be…_ Michael thought as he turned to find the source of the voice. A sense of dread started to set in when he saw a red Duel Runner crash onto the track and sped towards the eight contestants. The crowd murmured among themselves as the Duel Runner came to a screeching halt in front of the line of duelists. A Security Officer dismounted on the platform and snatched the microphone from the MC's hands, confirming Michael's fears.

_Well Rugal, looks like everything didn't work out after all..._ He thought.

"Pardon the interruption," Everest started. "My name is Everest Ashur, an officer of Sector Security. One of the contestants, namely Mr. Aker here, has broken the law."

The crowd started murmuring amongst themselves while Everest paused for dramatic effect. Michael was more concerned about the fact that he could be removed from the tournament right here and now. If he was disqualified and taken to the Facility, joining the tournament would've been pointless. He'd never find Jared and Jared would never find him.

"However, we can let it slide." Everest said. Michael's head shot up. Was he offering some form of deal? "Indeed. In the spirit of the festivities today, if Mr. Aker can defeat me in a duel we can all act like this never happened. If he loses however, he will be removed and… someone from the qualifiers will be contacted to take his place." Everest said.

_In the stands…_

"Oh Reynar, bringing your faithful watchdog all the way out here from Satellite to hound a duelist I already told you I had no interest in." Rugal chuckled. Jehan sat next to him, a satisfied smirk on the red-haired duelist's face. "I will concede however that it was a wonderful touch in not just giving the position in the tournament to him." Rugal noted.

_Back in the Stadium…_

"Well, are you ready?" Everest asked.

"I don't see much of a choice." Michael laughed nervously. Everest gave a sharp nod and tossed the microphone back to the MC who expertly caught it.

"Alright everyone, I've gotten confirmation from the Director that this duel is clear to go! We'll get out first glimpse at Michael's deck and even if we do lose him as a contestant, one of you lucky duelists who didn't make it through the qualifiers can take his place!" The MC announced.

Michael wheeled his Duel Runner down onto the track. He was incredibly nervous and prayed the crowd couldn't see it. He hopped on and put on his helmet, glancing over at the red Duel Runner next to him. The head of Satellite Security who terrified Michael with his ability was right next to him. Of all the places Michael thought he would end up facing Everest, he expected it to be a Satellite warehouse somewhere after he was cornered and had no place left to run. Not in a stadium filled with spectators during an event that was undoubtedly being watched by even more people who couldn't attend in person.

"Speed World 2, set!" The MC announced. The stadium and everything inside of took on a purple quality due to the field spell that was omnipresent in turbo duels.

"Duel Mode – Auto Pilot Standby." Michael's Duel Runner beeped. Ahead of him, a starter appeared which slowly counted down the seconds until to the match began.

"The starter has appeared, the duelist who takes the first corner gets to make the first move!" The MC reminded everyone. The counter continued to go down. 5…4…3…2…1… Then the buzzer sounded.

"Turbo Duel, Acceleration!" The MC shouted

**[Michael: 8000, SPC: 0 / Everest: 8000, SPC: 0]**

Both duelists sped off, but Everest immediately took the lead and kept close to the inside of the track. Right when Michael thought he was about to pass the Security officer, Everest moved to cut him off. Michael slowed down a little bit to avoid a collision but the damage was done. Everest took the first corner and the first move.

"The first move is mine!" Everest called triumphantly. A beep sounded as their Speed Counters each increased by one. "I set one monster face-down. Then I set two more cards face-down and end my turn." Everest said as the face-down monster appeared in front of his Duel Runner while the other two appeared on either side of his Duel Runner before fading away.

"Draw. I summon Genex Searcher!" Michael announced.

The machine that looked ready to fall apart at a moments notice appeared, giving off a low mechanical growl as it did so. [ATK: 1600]

"Searcher, attack his face-down monster!" Michael ordered. The Genex monster complied and flew forward, striking the face-down monster. A creature made of orange rock appeared for an instant before it was shattered from the blow.

"When Laval Miller is destroyed, I can send two Laval monsters from my deck to the graveyard!" Everest announced, sliding two monsters into his graveyard.

"The Laval series powers up by having cards in the graveyard, so this attack may have harmed Michael more than it has helped him!" The MC announced.

"I set one card. Your move." Michael said bitterly.

"Draw!" Everest called. Another beep and their Speed Counters were at three. "I activate the Speed Spell – Molten Transmission Field! When I have three or more Speed Counters, I can send two or more Laval monsters from my deck to the graveyard."

"Damn… I can't stop him from filling up his graveyard." Michael cursed.

"Next, I summon Laval Warrior." Everest said.

A creature made of molten orange rock appeared. It had steel plates on its shoulders, lower jaw and head. It growled menacing as it slashed the two burning axes it held through the air, scattering a large amount of embers. [ATK: 1800]

"Laval Warrior, destroy Genex Searcher!" Everest commanded.

Laval Warrior lunged forward and cleaved the robot in half with its flaming axe. Genex Searcher gave a mechanical shriek as the rest of its body burst into flames before exploding. As much as Michael wanted to block the attack with his face-down card, he knew this was for the best.

**[Michael: 7800, SPC: 3 / Everest: 8000, SPC: 3]**

"Laval Warriors effect activates! When I have four or more Laval monsters with different names in my graveyard, I can inflict damage to you equal to the destroyed monsters attack." Everest smirked.

Laval Warrior threw back its head and roared, leaping over and slashing Michael's Duel Runner with its two axes.

**[Michael: 6200, SPC: 3 / Everest: 8000, SPC: 3]**

"I didn't know it had an effect like that… But since you destroyed Genex Searcher, I can special summon a Genex monster with 1500 or less attack. I summon R-Genex Accelerator." Michael said.

The accelerator monster appeared where Genex Searcher had one stood. [ATK: 1500]

"I end my turn." Everest finished.

"Draw." Michael said, smiling at the card he drew. "Since I drew Genex Spare, I can special summon it to my side of the field using Accelerator's effect." Michael announced.

The accelerator monster began to spin, an orb of light shooting out of it. The orb of light expanded into a monster that very closely resembled Genex Controller, except this one held a flower in one hand. [ATK: 800]

"Then, I activate the Speed Spell – Instant Fusion! When I have three or more Speed Counters, at the cost of 1000 life points I can special summon a level five or lower Fusion monster from my extra deck! Come out, Kaminari Attack!" Michael called.

**[Michael: 5200, SPC: 4 / Everest: 8000, SPC: 4]**

A grey-haired man with a matching beard appeared wearing a white robe and wielding a bolt of lightning in one hand. [ATK: 1900]

"Now, I activate Genex Spare's effect! When I have another Genex monster on the field I can make this cards name Genex Controller until the End Phase!" Michael announced. "Since I have a Genex Controller on the field now, I can normal summon Genex Furnace without tributing!"

The sentient furnace appeared, the hatch door on the front of its body swinging open to reveal the burning flames inside. [ATK: 2000]

"I need to beat this guy… too much rides on it at this point." Michael muttered to himself. He shook his head and continued with his turn. "I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level five Kaminari attack! Gusting winds call forth a new entity, take flight and ride the winds of victory! Synchro Summon! Soar, Vindikite R-Genex!"

The green plane/bird hybrid appeared, screeching loudly as it flew high above Michael's Duel Runner. [ATK: 2400]

"Vindikite, attack Laval Warrior!" Michael commanded.

The green robot screeched and flew forward, striking the burning warrior in the chest and destroying it. Subsequently, Michael added one Genex monster to his hand through Vindikite's effect. More specifically, it was Genex Controller so next turn he could synch for Thermal Genex.

**[Michael: 5200, SPC: 4 / Everest: 7400, SPC: 4]**

"Accelerator! Furance! Direct attack!" Michael commanded.

The monsters obeyed without hesitation, Furnace shooting a jet of flames at the Security officer and Accelerator launching a beam of energy at him.

**[Michael: 5200, SPC: 4 / Everest: 3900, SPC: 4]**

"I activate the Quick-Play Speed Spell – Zero Reverse!" Everest countered. "By removing two of my Speed Counters I can special summon one monster that was destroyed in attack position; however, its attack becomes zero."

Laval Warrior re-appeared, but its body didn't glow with the same energy as it had before. [ATK: 0]

"Turn end." Michael said. With Everest Speed Counters dropping below Michael, the Satellite duelist was able to pass Everest on the track.

"Draw." Everest said, smirking despite the circumstances. "Let me show you the true terror of my Laval deck!" Everest laughed, slamming a card down on his duel disk.

Michael instantly recognized the rocky form of Laval Burner, the large monster roaring and pounding its chest with its two giant flames fists. The monsters red hair flew behind it as it set its sights on Vindikite. [ATK: 2100]

"With three or more Laval different Laval monsters in my graveyard, this card can be special summoned. Next, I summon Soaring Eagle Above the Searing Land!" Everest continued.

A red eagle engulfed in flames appeared, screeching loudly as it flapped its wings, scattering embers into the air. [ATK: 100]

"I tune my level one Soaring Eagle to my level four Laval Warrior!" Everest said as he raised his clenched fist into the air as the monsters became the synchro gates and stars. "The heat of battle calls forth this mighty beast, cry out and scorch the skyline with your unyielding flames! Synchro Summon! Burn, Lavalval Dragon!" Everest chanted.

A dragon that glowed with a fiery aura flew above Everest's Duel Runner. The beast's body was made of molten rocks like many of the other Lavals. The beast roared again and shot a jet of flames into the air. [ATK: 2000] From the jet of flames, Soaring Eagle appeared again much to the crowd's surprise. [ATK: 100]

"When Soaring Eagle is used for a Synchro Summon when I have three or more different Laval monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon it. But when it's removed from the field again I have to banish it. Now, I tune my level one Soaring Eagle to my level five Laval Burner!" Everest announced. "Flames whose heat exceeds all known limits converge to call forth this new warrior! Your power will bring the light of a new dawn! Synchro Summon! Ignite, Laval the Greater!"

A humanoid creature made of white rocks appeared. The beast had several bands around its body which glowed with intense blue flames. [ATK: 2400]

"Laval the Greater's effect activates! I discard one card from my hand. The card I discarded was Laval Phlogis, who grants all my Laval monsters 300 extra attack when he's sent to the graveyard." Everest smirked. Phlogis appeared above the two monsters, turning into an aura of flames which spread to Lavalval Dragon and Laval the Greater, bringing their strength up to 2300 and 2700 respectively.

"As expected of a high-ranking member of Sector Security! Instantly summoning two Synchro monsters and powering them up! But Vindikite can't be selected as an attack target, so how will Everest get past a monster like that?" The MC questioned.

"Lavalval Dragon, incinerate his Accelerator!" Everest commanded.

Lavalval Dragon shot forward and bathed the robotic monster in flames, melting it down to nothing.

**[Michael: 4400, SPC: 5 / Everest: 3900, SPC: 3]**

"Laval the Greater! Destroy Genex Furnace!" Everest commanded.

Laval the Greater gave a frightening battle cry as both of his fists ignited with blue flames. The Fire monster shot forward and launched its fist and Genex Furnace, only to have the attack be halted by a strange metal scarecrow.

"Scrap-Iron Scarecrow negates your attack and then re-sets itself." Michael smirked.

"I end my turn." Everest said, his voice brimming with confidence.

"Draw. I summon Genex Controller, and now I'll tune the level Controller to the level five Furnace!" Michael started. "The controller of the elements calls forth the power of searing flames! Synchro Summon! The flame burns through the darkness nights and harshest storms, Thermal Genex!"

The blue hovering robot that shot out its own blue flames appeared. The flames grew slightly more intense as the monster gained 200 extra attack points for having a Fire attribute monster in the graveyard. [ATK: 2400 - 2600]

"I set one card face-down. Thermal Genex, destroy his Lavalval Dragon!" Michael ordered.

The flaming robot did as it was instructed and fired a jet of blue flames at the dragon who countered with its own stream of red fire. Pillars of flames shot up from the ground and surrounded Laval the Greater and Lavalval Dragon, energizing the two creatures. [ATK: 2700 - 3500] [ATK: 2300 - 3100]With this new boost, Lavalval Dragon started pushing Thermal Genex's flames back.

"Molten Whirlwind Wall. This continuous trap grants every Laval monster 100 attack points for every monster in the graveyard. I have 8, so that's 800. More than enough for my Dragon to overpower your robot." Everest laughed. "Lavalval Dragon, counterattack! Vanquishing Firestorm!"

The dragon swooped down closer to Thermal Genex as it continued to push the other monsters flames back. Eventually, it pushed them back to the point where Thermal Genex was covered in its own flames and the flames of the Laval monster. Giving off a mechanical groan, the Machine-typed monster couldn't handle it anymore and shattered.

**[Michael: 3900, SPC: 6 / Everest: 3900, SPC: 4]**

"…I set one more card face-down and end my turn." Michael said quietly.

"Heh. This will be my last turn." Everest chuckled as he drew a card, a grin spreading over his face. "I summon Laval Blaster!"

A creature made of orange rock appeared. The creature wore a steel chest plate and steel goggles. Mounted on the creatures wrists were two devices that magma dripped out of. A pillar of fire rose up from the ground and enveloped the new monster, increasing its strength for every Laval in the graveyard. [ATK: 1200 - 2000]

"When Laval Gunner is summoned while I have a Laval monster other than Laval Gunner in my graveyard, I can send the top five cards of my deck to the graveyard. Gunner gains 200 attack for each Laval monster sent to the graveyard this way." Everest explained. He sent the top five cards of his deck to the graveyard. _Mirror Force... Laval Coatl… Laval Miller… Burgeoning Whirlflame… Laval Gunner._

"Well?" Michael asked after a moment.

"I milled three Laval monsters. So that means Blaster gains 600 extra attack points, and all my Laval monsters gains gain another 300 from Molten Whirlwind Wall!" Everest grinned as the flames around Lavalval Dragon, Laval the Greater and Laval Blaster all rose higher. [ATK: 3100 - 3400] [ATK: 3500 - 3800] [ATK: 2000 - 2900]

"So, are you going to finish this off now?" Michael asked with a smirk plastered on his fast.

"I'll wipe that smirk off your face. I activate the effect of Lavalval Dragon! By returning two Laval monsters from my graveyard to the deck, I can return one card on your field to the hand. I send 8 monsters back to the deck to return every card on your field to the hand!" Everest grinned as he slid 8 Laval monsters out of his graveyard, dropping the power of his monsters significantly. [ATK: 3400 - 2600] [ATK: 3800 - 3000] [ATK: 2900 - 2100]

Two Laval monsters appeared in front of Lavalval Dragon, their forms showing for only an instant before they became a fiery aura. Lavalval Dragon absorbed the two flaming monsters and shot a fireball at Vindikite, returning the Wind monster to Michael's extra deck. Another fireball sent Scrap-Iron Scarecrow to his hand. The next added the card he set first last turn to his hand. As the last fireball neared the last card he set, it rose up and half of a shield appeared on Michael's field.

"Half Shield will halve all damage I take this turn!" Michael announced.

"What?" Everest growled. He did some quick math in his head. Laval Blaster had an attack of 2100, Lavalval Dragon had an attack of 2600 and Laval the Greater had an attack strength of 3000. 1050 plus 1300 plus 1500… 3850. The kid would hang on, but only just so.

"My Laval monsters all attack you directly!" Everest declared furiously.

All three of the monsters unleashed their fire based attacks, but Michael was still able to drive through them, hanging on with a miniscule amount of life points.

**[Michael: 50, SPC: 7 / Everest: 3900, SPC: 5]**

"Make your last move." Everest grumbled, angry that this turn wasn't his last as he had so confidently said.

"Draw." Michael said. "First, I activate the Speed Spell – Count Up. I discard any number of cards and gain three Speed Counters for each. I'll discard the Scrap-Iron Scarecrow you so graciously returned to my hand to bring my Speed Counters up to 11."

"What could Michael be planning by increasing his Speed Counters? He has three monsters to contend with, all of which have other 2000 attack, and Laval the Greater who if he would be destroyed by a card effect, can remove another Laval monster from his graveyard to prevent his destruction." The MC said.

"I activate the Speed Spell – Deceased Synchron!" Michael declared. Behind the boys Duel Runner, a storm began to brew with eight stars visible in the winds that controlled it.

"Deceased Synchron?" Everest asked.

"By removing 8 of my Speed Counters, I can select one level eight or lower Synchro monster from my extra deck and special summon it by removing a Tuner and non-Tuner whose levels add up to the level of the selected monster. However, it's removed from play during the End Phase. I remove Genex Spare and Genex Furnace! Come forth, Genex Ally Axel!" Michael called.

The holograms of Genex Spare and Genex Furance rose up into the storm and for a few moments nothing happened. Everest past Michael, his Speed Counters having surpassed the Satellite duelists. Just then, then eight stars in the storm converged and a bolt of lightning struck the ground from the center of the storm and Genex Ally Axel appeared from it. [ATK: 2600]

"Next, Overboost to bring my Speed Counters up by 6, so they're at 9 now." Michael said, once again pulling ahead of Everest. "Then I activate Speed Spell – Final Attack! This doubles the attack of Axel by removing two Speed Counters when I have 5 or more!" Michael announced, his Speed Counters dropping to 7 as Axel's attack doubled to 5200.

"It's still not enough! Even attacking my weakest monster you'll only deal 3100 points of damage!" Everest pointed out.

"Remember the other card you returned to my hand? I'll remove six of my Speed Counter and now I'm going to use it finish you off," Michael smirked as he slid the card into his Duel Disk. "Limiter Removal!"

"Impossible!" Everest shouted.

"Axel! Destroy Laval the Greater! Axel Finish!" Michael commanded. The boys Duel Runner had yet again fallen behind Everest's due to having less Speed Counters than the older duelist.

"I'll be damned if I go down without a fight! Go, Laval the Greater!" Everest roared.

With an attack strength of 10400, Axel rode forward, pulling back its fist to deliver the final blow to Laval the Greater. Laval the Greater roared and ignited its fist with blue flames, flying forward to meet its robotic foe. The two fists collided, sending shockwaves of energy across the field. Axel roared and pushed Laval the Greater's fist back, sending a wave of energy forward which cut through and destroyed all three of the Laval monsters on Everest's side of the field.

**[Michael: 50, SPC: 3 / Everest: 0, SPC: 6]**

"To think… a duelist like him could come from the Satellite" Everest mumbled to himself as his Duel Runner came to a stop, Michael stopping his own Duel Runner next to his.

"The duel is over and Michael Aker is the winner! It looks like he'll be participating in the tournament after all folks!" The MC announced. The crowd started applauding, but Michael wasn't paying attention to them. He knew that if he ended the duel on bad terms Everest the Security Officer would have all the more reason to come after him after his eventual return to Satellite.

The brown-haired duelist dismounted his Duel Runner and removed his helmet. Taking a deep breath, his knees still a little weak from how close he came to losing everything before the tournament even started. He walked around his Duel Runner and up to Everest, who was still sitting on his Duel Runner mumbling to himself. He extended his hand and with as much volume as he could muster in his nervous state he said:

"Good match."

Everest raised an eyebrow, and Michael wasn't entirely sure if it was because he just didn't want to look bad in public or if he genuinely felt the same way, Everest shook his hand and replied with the same.

"I'll get you next time, Sate-" Everest stopped himself from finishing that sentence, simply shaking his head instead. With that, the Laval duelist drove out of the Stadium while Michael returned to the platform where the other contestants still stood.

_Back in the stands…_

"So do you know what crime he committed?" A woman with a green ponytail asked. The woman was Tasha, Travis's girlfriend.

"Yeah, I know what it is… I'll tell you in a less public place." Kali said nervously.

_Back in the stadium…_

"With that duel out of the way, let's finally see who is playing against whom!" The MC shouted, gesturing to the large screen which once again began to randomize headshots of the duelists.

The first set of two randomizing headshots stopped. Below them the word 'Turbo' flashed.

"The first match will be a Turbo Duel between Gale Brenner and Lynda Sterling!" The MC announced.

The next two stopped and Michael saw that his own face has been chosen. The word 'Ground' flashed below.

"The second match will be a Ground Duel between Michael Aker and Warren Barrett!" The MC announced.

Michael looked down the line at Warren, who showed no emotion at the sight of this match-up. The next randomizer stopped, Travis face being among the selected duelists. Below them the word 'Ground' flashed.

"The third match will be a Ground Duel between Savanna Lynwood and Travis Martell!" The MC announced. "Which means the final match will be between Demetri Bure and Winona Weaver!" The MC announced, the large screen reflecting this.

"Once all contestants not currently dueling return the waiting room, the first official match of the Fortune Cup will begin!" the MC announced, the crowd breaking out into thunderous applause and cheer.

Michael returned his Duel Runner to the garage and headed up to the lobby room he had been in before. He sat on a couch this time, Travis taking the seat next to him and complimenting him on his earlier duel, also inquiring into what exactly it was Michael did.

"I'll tell you later." Michael sighed, turning his eyes to the screen that hung in the lobby. Gale and Lynda were lined up at the startling line, ready to start at any second.

_So, this the guy Warren said cheated, eh? Well, let's see just what kind of duel you'll show us then… _Michael thought to himself as the countdown dropped to 0.

* * *

><p>I've noticed these chapters are getting longer. Hopefully that isn't a problem for you guys. I was really excited to do this chapter, which is why it didn't take me a week to do. Also, in case anyone wasn't aware Molten Transmission Field and the card Sweltering Heat Transmission Field used earlier in the story are in fact one in the same. I've gone back and changed the second chapter so it now uses the correct name. Another thing I gotta say is that I'm really not satisfied with these chapter names, but chapter naming isn't my forte. That's all from me for now, see you all next time!<p> 


	9. Chapter 9: Beast Rising

_In the stadium office…_

The office was in a high tower that overlooked the entire stadium. It was lavish, with couches and food placed out for anyone who was there. Those who were there included the King himself, Reynar, Christine and a few other employees of the Security Offices.

A glance was given in the direction of the door as Everest entered. The Laval duelist removed the helmet he was still wearing and gave a weak smile at the Director. Everest set his helmet down on a nearby table and moved to stand next to the Director.

"I did my best with what I got. I'm sorry." Everest apologized.

"You're more noble than I thought. You were going to give the vacant position to someone from the qualifiers." Reynar chuckled.

"Well, I guess it's 'cause like my current job." Everest shrugged. "If I got the title, I'd have people waiting on me and whatnot. Then I'd get complacent, an' that's no good for someone in my line of work." Everest explained, shaking his head.

"You're a good man Everest. I'm glad you're still here." Reynar said. Everest turned his head to look at the Director, but the man's gaze was still focused on the stadium below.

_In the stands…_

"So what do you think of this Gale fella?" Jehan asked, watching the duel that was going on down below. The brown-haired duelist was a user of Dragunity monsters and was quickly able to dominate the field. Coupled with some trap cards, he was shutting down every advance his female opponent made.

"I'd rather see him against someone more… interesting. I'd love to see him and Warren go at it. Especially with his hatred for this kid… oh, that would be a treat." Rugal sighed.

"What, you don't think the Gradius series is interesting?" Jehan asked as one of Gale's monsters speared Lynda's Victory Viper XX03 with a trident.

"She failed her OTK, this duel was lost the moment he stopped that combo." Rugal murmured.

"Yeah, she's just been trying to defend herself since then. It's not working out that well." Jehan chuckled as an orange creature slashed the platinum blonde's Duel Runner.

_In the lobby…_

The rest of the contestants watched the screen intently as Gale continued to shut down any strategy that was used against him.

"I activate Call of the Haunted to bring back T-45 Blue Thunder!"

"At the cost of two Speed Counters, Mystical Space Typhoon destroys your trap and your monster along with it!"

"Well, that duel is over." Travis sighed.

"It wasn't that interesting… unless you like watching one duelist wail on the other that's unable to make a comeback." Michael murmured.

"Barcha, finish her off!"

The attack connected and Gale finished the duel to 6000 life points, only taking a small amount of damage from his opponent's use of Honest. Gale didn't even wait for the MC to declare his victory, he didn't even slow down as he drove his Duel Runner back into the garage. All eyes turned to the brown-haired boy as he entered the room and flopped down on an unoccupied couch.

"After that thrilling first match, we have our first winner! Gale Brenner! He'll advance while Lynda Sterling is removed from the tournament" The MC announced. The crowd cheered, their enthusiasm having not been dampened in the slightest by the one-sided duel. The camera cut to Lynda, who was wheeling her own Duel Runner back into the garage. The Security had told all of them they were welcome to head up into the stands once they'd lost, so Michael figured she would be heading up there after this and he wouldn't be seeing her again.

"The second round will now begin! Will Michael Aker and Warren Barrett please come out to the main dueling area?" The MC asked.

"You're up." Travis said, patting the Genex duelist on the back.

Warren was already out the door by the time Michael had stood up. As he headed down into the garage and out towards the main dueling platform he took a few moments to calm himself. _Deep breaths, breathe in breathe out._

When he finally made it out onto the field, Warren was already standing there with his arms crossed. The two played a quick game of Rock-Paper-Scissors to decide who would go first, with Michael winning having selected Paper while his opponent picked Rock.

"It doesn't matter if you go first," Warren said. "I'll grind you into dust with my strength."

_In the stands…_

"Hehehe... _this _is the match I wanted to see." Jehan grinned, leaning forward and rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

"You really don't like him, do you?" A voice next to him murmured. Jehan turned his head to look at the black-haired headphones wearer sitting next to him.

"I _hate_ this kid. I want Warren to crush him. That spot in the tournament as supposed to be mine!" Warren growled. Rugal merely chuckled in response.

_Back in the stadium…_

"Both duelists are ready! Let's have the second match of the Fortune Cup… BEGIN!"

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000 / Warren: 8000]**

"Draw." Michael said. "I summon Genex Neutron in attack mode. I set two cards face-down and end my turn. During my End Phase, Genex Neutron lets me add one Machine-type Tuner to my hand." Michael said. His opening move wasn't spectacular, but he was playing cautiously for the time being. He wanted to get a feel of what kind of strength Warren was talking about when he made his earlier statement.

The black and orange form of Genex Neutron appeared in front of Michael. [ATK: 1800] The robot put its hands together and an orb of light formed, which flew away from the monster and into Michael's deck. Michael added a Machine-type Tuner to his hand and nodded at Warren to let the taller duelist know that he was done.

"Hehehe… I summon Phantom Beast Godspeed-Hawk!" Warren announced.

A golden hawk appeared, the creature raising high into the air and flapping its wings to gain altitude. The hawk looked majestic and had an almost radiant aura about it. [ATK: 200]

"When Godspeed-Hawk is summoned, if he's the only card I control, I can special summon another level four or lower Phantom Beast from my deck. I summon Phantom Beast Cross-Wing!" Warren declared.

Another bird appeared, this one being a combination of yellow and orange in color. The new bird had two sets of wings and its ears resembled a third set. [ATK: 1400]

"Now I activate Inferno Reckless Summon!" Warren continued.

"Inferno Reckless Summon is a quick-play spell card that lets Warren special summon all copies of a card with 1500 attack points or less when its special summoned, but Michael also gets to summon all copies of a card on his field from his hand, deck, or graveyard." The MC explained.

"I summon two more Cross-Wings from my deck!" Warren announced.

"With no other choice, I summon two more Genex Neutrons from my deck!" Michael followed up.

An explosion of energy swept across the field, scattering dust into the air. It dispersed quickly, revealing there were now three Cross-Wings on Warren's side of the field and three Genex Neutrons on Michael's side.

"Now, I tune my level one Godspeed-Hawk to my level four Cross-Wing!" Warren declared. "Primal rage burns within me, fueling the desire for revenge! Break free from your bonds and leave nothing standing! Synchro Summon! Crush, Phantom Beast Earthshatter-Mammoth!"

Godspeed-Hawk flew higher into the air, becoming a single green synchro gate. Cross-Wing flew through it, becoming an orange wireframe before it became four white stars. From the gates a huge four-legged beast appeared. The mammoth had armor on its back, legs was wearing a helmet. Weapons stuck out of the hide of the beast that proceeded to stamp its massive trunk-like legs onto the ground, shaking the playing field. [ATK: 1900 - 2200]

"At this moment, I activate the effect of Earthshatter-Mammoth! By sending any number of face-up Phantom Beasts to the graveyard, he gains 300 attack points times the number of sent monsters. So I'll my last two Cross-Wings to the graveyard to give him a 600 point boost." Warren smirked.

The beast let out a fierce cry, its trunk swinging high into the air. The two remaining Beast-Warrior monsters became spheres of light, which flew into the Synchro monster's body. But instead of gaining 600 extra attack points, it gained 1200 bringing its final total up to 3400. Before Michael could ask why his monster gained so much extra power the MC started to explain what had happened.

"Phantom Beast Cross-Wing gives all Phantom Beast monsters 300 extra attack points while it's in the graveyard. With all three copies in there, all of Warren's Phantom Beasts will gain an extra 900 attack points right off the bat! What an amazing opening play!" The MC explained. The crowd went wild, several groups of voices chanting Warren's name.

"I'll set two cards of my own face-down and activate Future Fusion, sending two monsters from my deck to give me a Fusion monster in two turns." Warren said. "Now, Earthshatter-Mammoth! Attack in his center Genex Neutron!" Warren commanded.

The larger creature charged forward, its tusk set to impale the Machine monster. The beast stopped when its tusk impaled a metal scarecrow. Wrenching itself free, the mammoth returned to Warren's field as Scrap-Iron Scarecrow re-set itself.

"Damn it. I end my turn." Warren said, cursing under his breath.

"Draw. I summon Genex Controller." Michael said.

The robotic creature appeared, giving off a series of beeps as it did so. No one could see it, but a smile was creeping over Warren's face. [ATK: 1400]

"Now, I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level four Genex Neutron!" Michael announced as the two monster rose up into the air. "Quaking earth, searing flames and blinding light come together to form a new entity! The power forged through unity! Synchro Summon, Genex Ally Triforce!"

The white robot exploded onto the field, one of the lights on its three pronged cannon giving off a bright white light. [ATK: 2500]

"I activate my face-down Tuner's Scheme! When you Synchro summon a monster, I gain control of it." Warren laughed. Michael could only watch in horror as Genex Ally Triforce teleported over to Warren's field. Michael silently cursed himself; he had planned to use his face-down Rising Energy to strengthen Triforce enough so it could beat Warren's Phantom Beast.

"I… set one more card face-down. Then I switch both of my Neutrons into defense mode. That ends my turn." Michael sighed.

"You can't hide behind your trap cards forever. Draw!" Warren said. "I summon Phantom Beast Wild-Horn!"

A bipedal Alaskan Moose monster appeared. The monster wore a red cape and wielded a strange sword. The creature let out a low growl as it stared past Michael's monsters and towards the duelist itself. The Beast-Warrior was surrounded by a golden glow for a few moments as the Cross-Wings in the graveyard powered him up. [ATK: 1700 - 2600]

"Now, Genex Ally Triforce! Attack one of his Genex Neutrons!" Warren roared.

"I activate my face-down Mirror Force! All your monsters are destroyed!" Michael countered, a shimmering wall appearing in front of his monsters.

"Who do you think you're dealing with here?" Warren shouted as one of the larger man's other set cards rose up.

"Oh my! Warren's set card was My Body as a Shield! At the cost of 1500 life points, this card will negate the activation of Michael's Mirror Force and destroy it!" The MC explained. A red aura surrounded the Phantom Beast duelist who grunted as his life points drained away.

**[Michael: 6600 / Warren: 6500]**

Michael braced himself as Triforce fired a volley of three rounds, smashing through the shimmering wall and obliterating his Genex Neutron. Thankfully he'd put it in defense mode. But he still had to find a way to get past Warren's powerhouse monster line-up.

"I should let you know, Wild-Horn inflicts piercing damage. Now, Wild-Horn! Attack!" Warren commanded.

The bipedal Beast-Warrior ran forward, bringing its weapon down on Genex Neutron. Well, it tried to do that anyway. But a metal scarecrow rose up from the ground to intercept the attack.

"Go, Earthshatter-Mammoth!" Warren continued.

The mammoth ran forward and stomped on Genex Neutron, the Machine-type monster exploding from the impact. Michael felt himself get pushed backwards from the explosion and grimaced. This guy was able to inflict real damage, just like Vincent. But thankfully, he hadn't taken any damage.

"I'll use Genex Ally Triforce's effect to bring back my Godspeed-Hawk face-down, and then set another card face-down. That ends my turn." Warren finished.

"Draw." Michael said, frowning at his draw. He was running out of cards to defend with. Not only that, but he had three monsters to contend with the lowest of whom had 2500 attack points.

"Have you finally realized you just can't compete with me?" Warren sneered.

"I…" He had to keep going. If he lost and had to find a new place to stay, it wouldn't be that bad. But everyone knew he was criminal now. Kali had come to the city because he was going. "I set one monster face-down, and then I set two cards face-down."

"Is that all?" Warren chuckled.

"Yeah…. It is." Michael sighed.

"Draw. Two turns have passed, so Future Fusion gives me a monster! Come forth, Chimera the Flying Mythical Beast!" Warren grinned.

A two headed beast with a black mane, white wings and a snake as tail appeared. The heads let out a twin howl as a golden glow enveloped the new monster. [ATK: 2100 - 3000]

"Chimera isn't a Phantom Beast though!" Michael protested.

"Read the card text." Warren sneered. "This card is always treated as a Phantom Beast. Next, I'll flip summon Godspeed-Hawk. Then I'll send him to the graveyard to give my Mammoth 300 more attack points. Then Triforce will bring him back."

The golden form of the hawk monster that was strangely a Beast-Warrior appeared. It shimmered for a few seconds before becoming a shining orb with entered the body of Earthshatter-Mammoth, increasing the beast's already impressive power to 3700. Triforce shot a shining orb from its cannon, the orb hitting the ground and taking the form of a face-down monster.

"If the monster I'm tributing is a Phantom Beast, I can summon it with only one tribute. I tribute Godspeed-Hawk to summon Phantom Beast Rock-Lizard!" Warren shouted.

A huge four-legged creature that resembled a centaur made of rocks with a tail appeared. The beast threw back its head and let out a deafening roar much like the other Phantom Beasts had.

"Wild-Horn, destroy his face-down monster!" Warren commanded.

"Scrap-Iron Scarecrow, protect me!" Michael countered. The bipedal Beast-Warrior came to a halt in front of the metal scarecrow, snarling viciously and futilely slashing at it with its sword.

"Rock-Lizard!" Warren shouted, pointing towards the set card.

The huge beast ran forward and smashed the set card with its fist, revealing the broken form of Genex Ally Crusher. As the monster disappeared from the field, Rock-Lizard roared with triumph and whipped around, its tailing striking Michael and knocking the Genex duelist over.

**[Michael: 6100 / Warren: 6500]**

"Rock-Lizard inflicts 500 points of damage to my opponent when it destroys a monster. Now, let's end this! Triforce! Attack your former master!" Warren commanded.

Triforce fired a volley of three shots, all three of which struck the duelist who was struggling to regain his footing after Rock-Lizard knocked him over. As the debris from the explosion cleared, half of a shield became visible.

**[Michael: 4850 / Warren: 6500]**

"Half Shield? You're using a trash card like that? I guess I shouldn't expect high caliber cards from someone of your background." Warren chuckled.

"Well… it'll give me another turn, so I guess it's worth something after all." Michael said, smiling weakly.

"Let's see if you can even get up after this turn. Chimera!" Warren shouted, pointing towards Michael. The two headed beast growled and flew forward, ramming head first into the brown-haired duelist, sending him to the ground and knocking the wind out of him.

**[Michael: 3350 / Warren: 6500]**

"Now… Earthshatter-Mammoth! Crush him!" Warren roared. A pulse of energy emitted from the Phantom Beast, very similar to the one Michael and many others felt several days ago. The mammoth charged forward and raised its truck, bringing it down hard on the Genex duelist who raised his arms to cover his face.

_In the stands…_

"He always gets so aggressive during duels, I didn't expect he'd put that much energy into this attack. But he's speeding everything up; it was the right choice to send him here." Rugal said, chuckling softly much to Jehan's agitation.

_Back in the stadium…_

**[Michael: 1500 / Warren: 6500]**

Michael gasped for air, the blow from that last attack being so much more effective since he hadn't recovered his wind from Chimera's attack. He gasped pitifully as he shakily tried to stand up. He couldn't make it, falling down onto one knee while he took in deep breaths of air. His body ached, his head throbbed and he had only just made it through the turn.

"Tch. Guess you're more of a cockroach than I thought." Warren grumbled.

"I… can still go on." Michael panted.

"You can't even stand and face me, plus I don't think you fully understand your situation." Warren snarled, pointing to Rock-Lizard. "If you destroy Rock-Lizard with a card effect, he'll hit you for 2000 points of damage. There's no card in your pathetic deck that can deal with all of these monsters at once. Face it, you can't win."

"Maybe I can't… but I can damn well try." Michael choked out as he drew his card, finally managing to stand up again. "I activate my set Limit Reverse to bring back my Genex Ally Crusher."

The yellow plated robot appeared, tossing a grenade in the air and catching it, not seeming at all intimidated by the five much more powerful beasts ahead of it. [ATK: 1000]

"Useless." Warren chuckled.

"I summon R-Genex Overseer. I don't have any applicable monster in my hand, so his effect isn't important. But the effect that is important is Crusher's." Michael said.

"When a monster with the same Attribute as Genex Ally Crusher is normal summoned, Crusher can destroy one card on the field!" The MC explained with more enthusiasm than necessary.

"So, you're going to destroy my mammoth?" Warren snarled. "Go ahead; it won't save you from the rest of my monsters."

"No… I'm destroying Tuner's Scheme!" Michael declared.

"What?" Warren growled. Genex Ally Crusher lobbed a grenade over Warren's monsters and at Tuner's Scheme, shattering the trap card and returning Genex Ally Triforce to Michael's side of the field.

"I'll use Triforce's effect to summon one of the many Neutrons you destroyed face-down. Now, I tune my level two Overseer to my level seven Triforce!" Michael declared, energy returning to his voice. "The one who charges endless through the darkness, the light that captives even the strongest foe! Synchro Summon! Charge, Locomotion R-Genex!"

The giant train monster appeared on Michael's field. [ATK: 2500] Shining the light on its chest on Rock-Lizard, the level seven monster teleported to Michael's field. Its power didn't drop due to Cross-Wings effect not restricting the boost to only Warren's side of the field, so its strength remained at 3100.

"Next, Pot of Avarice. I return Triforce, Overseer, Neutron, Neutron and Controller to my deck to draw two cards." Michael said, smiling when he saw his draw. "I set one card face-down. Rock-Lizard, destroy Wild-Horn!" Michael commanded.

"Damn it." Warren cursed. He had nothing to protect his monster, so he could only watch as Rock-Lizard destroyed it. The Beast-Warrior hit its former master with its tail, reducing his life points by an additional 500 points.

**[Michael: 1500 / Warren: 5500]**

"I end my turn." Michael finished.

"Draw." Warren snarled. "I summon Phantom Beast Thunder-Pegasus!"

A two-headed Pegasus that had one black head and one red head, appeared. The beast neighed loudly and stomped its hooves, summoning what appeared to wings made of electricity. [ATK: 700]

"I send Thunder-Pegasus to the graveyard to increase the strength of Earthshatter-Mammoth to 4000!" Warren laughed. "This is the end! I'll finally end this duel with this attack! Earthshatter-Mammoth, destroy Genex Ally Crusher and wipe out his life points!" The mammoth roared and charged forward, Michael smiling as his trap card rose.

"I activate Trap of Darkness. By paying 1000 life points when I have 3000 or less, this card lets me remove from play a normal trap card in my graveyard to have this card mimic its effect." Michael smirked. "It should be clear which one I'm picking."

A red glow surrounded Michael as his life points dropped. Even with only 500 points remaining, the Genex duelist was smiling. Seconds later, Trap of Darkness disappeared and a shimmering wall appeared in front of the advancing Phantom Beast.

**[Michael: 500 / Warren: 5500]**

"Damn it all!" Warren screamed. The mammoth charged straight into the shimmering wall, destroying it and triggering a beam of light that shot form the wall and struck Chimera, causing the last monster on Warren's field to disappear in a cloud of dust.

"I held out…" Michael breathed.

"Not yet… I'm not some third-rate duelist. It's not over." Warren growled.

"You have no cards in your hand and none on your field, I think it _is_ over." Michael said.

"Oh, but I do have a monster on my side of the field!" Warren laughed.

As the dust cleared, it quickly became clear Warren was right. A brown beast with a black mane and a horn on its head stood on the ground. The creature howled as yellow glow surrounded it, boosting its strength. [ATK: 1500 - 2400]

"But-!" Michael protested.

"When Chimera is destroyed, I can special summon either Gazelle or Berfomet from my graveyard. Also, Cross-Wings power gaining effect also applies to Gazelle. So I can still finish you off! Go, Gazelle! Destroy his Genex Ally Crusher!" Warren roared.

"I activate the card I set on my first turn! Rising Energy! By discarding the card in my hand, Crusher gains 1500 extra attack points for a grand total of 2500!" Michael countered.

"DAMN IT!" Warren cursed.

Gazelle galloped forward, but as Michael slid the only card in his hand into the graveyard, the yellow plated robot threw a grenade at the advancing creature and destroyed it.

**[Michael: 500 / Warren: 5400]**

"I have nothing left… it's… your move." Warren growled.

"Draw!" Michael shouted. He didn't bother looking at the card. This field was enough to win.

"I flip summon Genex Neutron. Now, Neutron, Crusher, Locomotion! Attack him directly!" Michael commanded.

The three monsters, their combined strength totaling 5300, launched their attacks. With nothing to protect himself, Warren took the blows. The larger duelist winced, apparently taking some actual damage from the attacks.

**[Michael: 500 / Warren: 100]**

"You disrespected me... You disrespected my cards…" Michael started, clenching his fist. "For that, I'll use your own monster to finish you off. Rock-Lizard, finish him!" Michael screamed, pointing towards his opponent.

The rock beast roared in compliance and charged forward. Bringing its large fist back, the beast smashed said fist into his former master, sending the Phantom Beast duelist flying across the platform, his body hitting the ground and skidding to a stop right before it would have gone over the edge.

**[Michael: 500 / Warren: 0]**

"Are you alright?" Michael asked, stunned he'd been able to make a monster do that. He walked over towards the fallen duelist to help him up as the holograms disappeared around him. But the larger duelist swatted away his hand and got up by himself.

"As if you care." Warren growled. "I guess you're stronger than he said. I wasn't expecting that."

"The second match of the Fortune Cup comes to a close and Michael Aker has snatched victory from the jaws of defeat!" The MC announced. The crowd burst into applause, none of them seeming to care that some form of harm, even though it was not that severe, had come to the duelists.

Warren stormed off and Michael wasn't far behind him. He returned to the lobby while the Phantom Beast duelist headed into the stands to watch the rest of the matches. Collapsing onto the couch, Michael gave a tired glance at Travis and then turned his head back to the monitor.

"I'm up next." Travis said, lifting himself off of the couch and stretching.

"Good luck." Michael said.

"Now you've jinxed it." Travis laughed.

"After that heated battle, we move onto the third match! A Ground Duel between Travis Martell and Savanna Lynwood! Will both contestants please come and take the stage?"

Travis gave a small wave to Michael and adjusted his fedora, following the red-haired Savanna out the door. Moments later they were on-screen, Travis losing the first move to Savanna. But the Gemini duelist still seemed happy. With any luck, he wouldn't have to experience getting attacked by a giant mammoth that could actually hurt you.

_In the stadium office…_

"…You saw that, didn't you?" Reynar asked.

"I did." Everest replied.

"He knocked that duelist clear across the field… It appears Tabitha was wrong about his level of power." Reynar muttered.

"So, that means he is with Rugal? Good thing we knocked his other guy out. Plus we still have Demetri." Everest grinned.

"I'm surprised they went so far though. I mean… it looked like they were both out to hurt the other." Reynar said quietly. "He's an interesting one…"

"I guess we'll just keep an eye on him then?" Everest asked. Rugal merely nodded in response.

_Back in the stadium…_

"Well everyone, both of the contestants are here! Let's have the third match of the Fortune Cup… BEGIN!"

* * *

><p>Phantom Beast Godspeed-Hawk<br>Level 1  
>LIGHT<br>Beast-Warrior/Effect

200 Atk / 300 Def

When this card is Summoned, if it is the only monster you control, you can special summon one level four or lower 'Phantom Beast' from your deck.

* * *

><p>Phantom Beast Earthshatter-Mammoth<br>Level 5  
>EARTH<br>Beast-Warrior/Synchro/Effect

1900 Atk / 2500 Def

1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner Beast-Warrior Type monsters  
>This card cannot be destroyed by battle. You can send any number of face-up Phantom Beast monsters you control to the graveyard to have this card gain 300 attack points for each.<p>

* * *

><p>This chapter was originally going to feature two duels, but the match with Gale just dragged the chapter out and to be perfectly honest it wasn't all that interesting, so I cut it down to just this. One thing I'm going to try and work on in the next few chapters is the banter between duelists during the duels. Hope you all have a great day!<p> 


	10. Chapter 10: Desperate Tag

"Duel!"

**[Travis: 8000 / Savanna: 8000]**

"I set one monster face-down, and then I'll set three more cards. That's the end of my turn." Savanna said.

"A more conservative player, eh?" Travis noted as he drew one card for his turn. His hand contained four Gemini monsters, a spell card he couldn't use at the moment and Card Destruction. "I don't really like this hand so I'll activate Card Destruction; we discard our hands then draw the same amount of cards we discarded." Travis said as he drew five new cards, a smile crossing his face.

"You have a terrible poker face." Savanna chuckled.

"What can I say? They're decent cards. I summon Dark Valkyria in attack position and set one card face-down." Travis said.

A pale faced fairy with silver hair appeared. The fairy wore purple armor and had black, almost mechanical looking wings. [ATK: 1800]

"Dark Valkyria attacks your face-down monster!" Travis announced as his Fairy monster fired a blast of energy towards the set monster.

"Negate Attack says otherwise." Savanna smirked. A strange vortex appeared in front of the set monster and absorbed the attack. Dark Valkyria snarled, disgruntled over being unable to successfully launch an attack with the vortex protecting the set monster.

"My turn is over." Travis sighed.

"Draw. I summon Ameba in attack position!" Savanna declared.

"Ameba?" Travis asked.

A strange blue gelatinous mass appeared on Savanna's side of the field. [ATK: 300]

"Next, I activate Creature Swap. We each select a monster on our respective sides of the field and switch control of them. I pick Ameba." Savanna smirked.

"Well, I don't have a choice so you can have Dark Valkyria." Travis sighed.

The two monsters teleported to the others position, Travis now in control of the strange jelly like creature and Savanna in control of his Dark Valkyria. Ameba suddenly latched itself onto Travis's duel disk and while the Gemini duelist was trying to shake it off, he lost a significant amount of life points. Ameba finally detached itself and fell down onto the fedora wearer's field after draining a quarter of Travis's life points.

**[Travis: 6000 / Savanna: 8000]**

"Ameba inflicts 2000 damage to my opponent when control of it is switched. Don't bother trying to give him back however, that effect only works once." Savanna smirked.

"That was very well-played." Travis noted, tipping his hat to the female duelist.

"Why thank you." Savanna laughed. "Dark Valkyria, destroy Ameba!"

The Fairy monster launched another magical blast of energy at the Aqua-type monster. With no vortex to absorb the attack this time, Dark Valkyria smiled as the Ameba creature shattered from the attack.

**[Travis: 4500 / Savanna: 8000]**

"It's your turn." Savanna finished.

"Draw. I activate my face-down Birthright to bring back the Phoenix Gearfried I discarded at the beginning of the match!" Travis announced.

In a bright flash of light, a soldier clad in white armor with vibrant orange flames on his shoulders appeared. The warrior gave a proud battle cry as he raised his sword, pointing it directly at Dark Valkyria. [ATK: 2800]

"So, this is your ace monster?" Savanna asked, folding her arms over her chest.

"Not exactly, but he's up there. Definitely number two or three." Travis replied.

"Considering he has no effect when he's summoned... I'd say he leaves something to be desired." Savanna said, shaking her head.

"Well, I'll show you another one of my monsters then. I activate the spell card Dragon's Mirror! I remove the Dawnbreak Gardna and Grasschopper from my graveyard to fusion summon Superalloy Beast Raptinus!" Travis declared.

The Frankenstein dragon exploded onto the battlefield, roaring loudly and shooting jets of blue flames into the air. It immediately turned its sights on Phoenix Gearfried and Dark Valkyria, bathing both creatures in blue flames and granting them their effects. [ATK: 2200]

Dark Valkyria's armor glowed as the orbs embedded in various parts of her body began to glow with a mystic energy. Gaining her effect granted her a Spell Counter, which also granted her 300 extra attack points. [ATK: 2100]

"Phoenix Gearfried, attack Dark Valkyria!" Travis commanded.

"I activate my face-down Scrubbed Raid! I send the other set card I have to the graveyard to end the Battle Phase!" Savanna countered.

"You're just forming an impenetrable defense now, aren't you?" Travis laughed.

"Yeah yeah, laugh all you want. Are you done yet?" Savanna asked impatiently.

"I s'pose I am." Travis sighed.

"Excellent. I draw. Now, I activate Star Blast! By paying 1500 life points, I can reduce the level of the Brain Crusher in my hand by three!" Savanna announced. Three glowing stars flew down from the sky and smashed into the red-haired duelist.

**[Travis: 4500 / Savanna: 6500]**

"Now, since its level four, I can summon Brain Crusher!" Savanna grinned.

A hideous multiple-eyed insect with several sets of wings and a giant abdomen appeared. The insect screeched loudly and clawed at the air in front of it. [ATK: 2400]

"What a sight…" Travis murmured.

"Hehe, you should be nervous. Brain Crusher, attack Raptinus!" Savanna commanded.

Brain Crusher grabbed the patchwork dragon and held it tight with its claws, wrapping its arms around the beast's neck and pulling it down so it could latch its jaws onto the beast's skull. The crowd recoiled in horror as the creature did this, Raptinus eventually shattering into holographic shards.

**[Travis: 4300 / Savanna: 6500]**

Energy seemed to seep out of Phoenix Gearfried, but the drain was more easily seen in Dark Valkyria. The orbs on the body of the Fairy monster ceased to glow as she lost her Spell Counter and the 300 point bonus. Without Raptinus, both she and Gearfried were once again normal monsters.

"But my fun doesn't end there, oh no. During my Main Phase 2, I flip my Dummy Golem face up." Savanna grinned.

"Dummy Golem?" Travis asked, glancing in the direction on the MC for an explanation.

"When Dummy Golem is flipped face-up, the opponent selects one monster they control and switches control of it with Dummy Golem!" The MC announced.

"You can't be serious…" Travis whispered.

"That's right! I'm taking your Gearfried!" Savanna laughed.

A giant grey golem appeared. The golem exhaled and in the blink of an eye, it and Phoenix Gearfried had switched positions. [ATK: 800]

"So you've taken two of my monsters now. This is an interesting play style you have." Travis commented.

"Thank you. But actually, I've taken three of your monsters." Savanna smirked.

"I'm pretty confident in my math; I see Dark Valkyria and Phoenix Gearfried. Where's the third?" Travis asked.

"During my End Phase, Brain Crusher special summons one of the monsters it destroyed to my side of the field." Savanna grinned.

What appeared to be a large clump of slime exited the back of Brain Crusher's abdomen. The audience was revolted, but looked on with morbid curiosity as the lump began to move. Slowly, a long neck rose out of it. Shaking the slime off of it, the beast gave a mighty roar and revealed its form to be that of Raptinus. [ATK: 2200]

"…Oh my." Travis breathed.

"Yep. Plus, since I control Raptinus, all my Gemini monsters gain their effects." Savanna stated. Raptinus bathed Phoenix Gearfried and Dark Valkyria with its blue flames, granting them their effects.

"Draw. I set one card face-down and switch Dummy Golem into defense position. Your move." Travis said, shrugging his shoulders.

Dummy Golem crossed its arms over its chest and dropped down onto one knee. [DEF: 800]

"Draw. I'll use Dark Valkyria's effect, removing her Spell Counter to destroy Dummy Golem!" Savanna shouted. All of the orbs on Valkyria's body glowed as she fired a beam of dark energy at Dummy Golem, destroying the last monster on Travis's field.

"Phoenix Gearfried, attack him directly!" Savanna commanded.

"Go, Draining Shield!" Travis countered.

A shield appeared in front of Travis just as Gearfried brought his sword down. The shield absorbed the damage and healed Travis for the same amount, putting him at a healthy amount of life points.

**[Travis: 7100 / Savanna: 6500]**

"Resilient, aren't you?" Savanna said, shaking her head.

"I think it's one of my best qualities." Travis smiled.

"Hmph. Dark Valkyria! Brain Crusher! Raptinus! Attack him directly!" Savanna commanded. The three attacks struck Travis in rapid succession, dealing a total of 6400 damage to the Gemini duelist.

**[Travis: 700 / Savanna: 6500]**

"It's your turn. Not much that you can do though." Savanna chuckled.

"Draw. I summon Evocator Chevalier!" Travis announced.

A soldier in red armor who was brandishing a flaming sword appeared. Evocator slashed the air in front of him, sending sparks into the air. Raptinus bathed the creature in blue flames and granted the monster its effect. [ATK: 1900]

"So this is your last line of dense?" Savanna smirked.

"Not really. I activate Gemini Spark. By tributing Evocator, I can destroy your Scrubbed Raid and draw one card." Travis explained. Evocator Chevalier became cloaked in energy and the Warrior-type monster ran across the field, slamming headfirst into Scrubbed Raid, destroying it.

"What was the point of that? There's nothing you could've used to attack with anyway." Savanna scoffed.

"That's true. But it won't be soon enough. I activate Cup of Ace!" Travis declared as he slid the spell card into his duel disk. A large coin appeared in the center of the battlefield.

"Cup of Ace? You're really going to gamble at a time like this?" Savanna asked.

"Well, if I'm going to lose anyway I can't think of a better time to gamble." Travis chuckled.

The coin rose air into the air and began to flip around. Travis, Savanna, the MC and the crowd all watched as it descended and landed perfectly on its side. No one said anything at first, then after a few seconds the coin tipped to one side and fell over, revealing the result: Heads.

"So now I can draw two cards." Travis grinned as he drew from his deck through Cup of Ace's effect. He rearranged the four cards in his hand and nodded slowly to himself. "I set three cards face-down and end my turn." Travis finished. He smiled at the last card in his hand. As long as he held that card, he still had a sliver of hope.

"Draw!" Savanna announced.

"At this moment, I activate Forbidden Chalice to give Raptinus 400 extra attack points but negate its effect!" Travis announced. Raptinus roared as its strength increased but the other two Gemini monsters on the field seemed to slouch a little as their energy was robbed from them.

"That won't accomplish anything! But just in case your face-down is Magic Cylinder or something, Dark Valkyria attacks you directly!" Savanna commanded.

"I activate Birthright to bring back Darkstorm Dragon, the last of the monsters I discarded at the beginning of the match." Travis said with an oddly calm tone.

A thin black dragon appeared in a gust of dark wing. Screeching loudly, the creature flapped its wings and summoned a cyclone below it. [ATK: 2700]

"Since the field conditions have changed, I'll stop Dark Valkyria's attack. But if you want to play like that, fine. Phoenix Gearfried, attack and destroy Darkstorm Dragon!" Savanna snarled.

Phoenix Gearfried cloaked himself in flames and rose into the air. Flying forward, Phoenix Gearfried sliced through the dark dragon and destroyed it.

**[Travis: 600 / Savanna: 6500]**

"Now, Raptinus! Finish off your former master!" Savanna commanded.

_Back in the stands…_

"Well, he put up a good fight." Tasha smiled.

"He really did. I'm sure he had fun though." Kali nodded.

"…Wait a minute, what's he doing down there?" Tasha asked, leaning forward in her seat slightly. Kali gave the green-haired girl a confused expression and turned her attention back to the field.

_Back in the stadium…_

"Oh, I don't think you want to attack me. Not when I have a monster that's vastly stronger than yours." Travis chuckled as he put the last card in his hand onto his duel disk.

"What are you talking about?" Savanna asked.

Her question was answered mere moments later as a strange three-layered seal appeared on Travis's side of the field. A giant creature that resembled a jade green dogū appeared. The new monster had a seal on its forehead greatly similar to the one that it had just risen out of. [ATK: ? - 4000]

"4000 attack points? How you can play a monster like that during my turn?" Savanna asked, demanding an answer.

"I'll let him field this one." Travis chuckled as he glanced in the direction of the MC.

"Orichalcos Shunoros can be special summoned from the hand when a normal monster is destroyed by battle. Since Gemini monsters are treated as normal monster when they don't have their effects, Savanna fulfilled the requirements by destroying Darkstorm Dragon! Also, Orichalcos Shunoros gains 1000 attack points for every monster on your side the field for a grand total of 4000!" The MC explained.

"So that's why you negated Raptinus's effect…" Savanna growled.

"Exactly. Now, I do believe you have an attack to call off." Travis smiled.

"No, not exactly. I want your monster to be as weak as possible, so I have no problem sacrificing the monsters I won't need anymore. If I destroy Raptinus and Brain Crusher through battling Shunoros, sure I'll lose some life points, but it'll only have 2000 attack points left. Phoenix Gearfried will win me the match next turn." Savanna smirked.

"By all means, go for it." Travis smiled.

"Raptinus! Go!" Savanna commanded, pointing at stronger monster.

Raptinus shot a stream of blue fire towards the Orichalcos monster, who didn't react at all. A glowing ring appeared around its torso, which rose up over its head and then flew towards the Dragon-type monster, slicing it in half. As Raptinus left the field, Shunoros lost some of its strength. [ATK: 4000 - 3000]

**[Travis: 600 / Savanna: 4700]**

"Brain Crusher, you're up next!" Savanna continued

As Brain Crusher was lumbering towards it, Shunoros formed another glowing ring which sliced t he monster in half before it even reached him. As another hologram faded, Shunoros lost some more strength. [ATK: 3000 - 2000]

**[Travis: 600 / Savanna: 4100]**

"Your monster isn't so formidable now." Savanna chuckled.

"You're right, I'll have to remedy that. I activate Ojama Trio, giving you three Ojama tokens. Then, with three more monsters..." Travis smirked.

"No!" Savanna shouted.

The three speedo-wearing monsters appeared on Savanna's field, smiling at Travis as they all flopped down into a sitting position. [DEF: 1000] With the three Ojamas on the field, Shunoros was able to reach its maximum power level. [ATK: 2000 - 5000]

"Even attacking my weakest monster, I can still hang on." Savanna growled. She glanced at the two cards in her hand. Book of Taiyou and Soul Reversal. Nothing that could really help her here, since even if she used Soul of Reversal to get back Dummy Golem there was nothing worthwhile she could steal with it. Unless he summoned a another monster, taking control of Shunoros would just leave her with an over-sized paper she figured it was better for her to have it than him. "I activate Soul Reversal to put Dummy Golem on the top of my deck. Then... I end." She finished.

"Draw!" Travis said as he drew from his deck. "Well, it appears this is my lucky day." Travis smiled.

"What did you draw?" A slightly nervous Savanna asked.

"Junk Barrage." Travis said simply as he slid the card into his duel disk. Savanna's jaw dropped as she stared at the dogū monster who now glowed with an orange aura.

"But… that means…" Savanna growled. Her eyes raced across her field and fell on Dark Valkyria and its strength of 1800. "Damn it!"

"Orichalcos Shunoros, attack Dark Valkyria and finish this duel with Photon Ring Blast!" Travis commanded.

A glowing ring appeared around the Orichalcos monster. The ring rose up over the monsters head and then flew forward, slicing Dark Valkyria in half. The Fairy-type monster screamed loudly as it exploded, taking most of Savanna's life points with it.

**[Travis: 600 / Savanna: 900]**

"Now, since the monster that was equipped with Junk Barrage destroyed a monster and sent it to the graveyard," Travis paused, adjusting his fedora. "You take damage equal to half of that monster's attack points."

Orichalcos Shunoros raised its arms, which detached from its body and flew toward Savanna. They whizzed by Phoenix Gearfried's head and struck the female duelist, who sighed and lowered her head in defeat.

**[Travis: 600 / Savanna: 0]**

"That's it! Savanna's life points have hit 0, so that means Travis is the victor! Let's hear it for him!" The MC announced. The crowd broke into cheer and Travis bowed before making his way back into the waiting room.

_In the stadium office…_

"Huh. I thought for sure he was done for." Everest muttered.

"I had a hunch he'd pull through. He has the same tenacity as his father." Reynar chuckled.

"Oh yeah, that guys Dad owns the Martell Hotel. I didn't know you knew him though." Everest said, nodding slowly to himself and scratching his chin.

"Yes, he and I were friends back in the day. He would never back down from a fight that one. He'd always keep going until the last card was played. An interesting tidbit is that Mr. Aker is staying at his hotel." Reynar explained.

"Is that right?" Everest asked.

"Uhmm… sir? A thought just occurred to me in regards to Mr. Aker." Christine interjected.

"Go on." Reynar asked, a look of intrigue spreading across his face.

"That deck that was stolen from your lab all those years ago… wasn't it…." Christine trailed off, waiting for Reynar to come to the same conclusion she had.

"…Genex." Reynar whispered.

"You saw how he sent that boy flying before, plus he uses that deck… sure it could be a coincidence, but it's unlikely." Christine said.

"But he's registered as having been in Satellite all his life." Everest reminded them.

"That's never stopped Rugal before." Reynar muttered.

"So what do you think we should do?" Christine asked.

"Send anyone we have free right now to go… pay him a visit." Reynar said.

"Now? In the middle of the tournament?" Everest asked.

"Yes, right away. I'll see if Julius is free, maybe he can shed some more light on this guy's true character." Christine said. She excused herself from the group and headed off to find Julius.

"An excellent choice. Anyway, Demetri's match is next. So if he really is with Rugal like we suspect, then the less he sees of his deck the better. Besides, if he is using the deck we think he's using than he could be more dangerous than I thought." Reynar explained.

"Why is that?" Everest asked.

"In his extra deck there exists a card that shouldn't be." Reynar murmured. That was all the older man had to say on the matter.

_Back in the waiting room…_

"The fourth and final match of the first round will now begin! Will Demetri Bure and Winona Weaver please report to the dueling field immediately?" The MC asked.

Glancing around the room, Michael saw that Demetri was nowhere to be seen. Winona exited the room soon after, leaving only Gale, Travis and Michael himself.

"Alright, so what did you do?" Travis asked, fixing his gaze on Michael.

"I told you, I'll tell you somewhere else." Michael sighed.

"You can tell me here. Gale won't hear it if you talk quietly. I'm not even sure if he's awake. But if you're still worried we can go down into the garage." Travis suggested. Sure enough, a glance in Gale's direction revealed that the brown-haired teen was lying down on the couch, hands behind his head and his eyes closed.

Still feeling a little paranoid, Michael stood up and led Travis down into the garage. It was deserted, but camera lined the walls so there could be no tampering with someone else's Duel Runner.

"Well… alright," Michael sighed as he leaned against the wall. "I'm from Satellite."

Travis recoiled slightly but then composed himself, adopting a blank expression. "You're… from Satellite? But… the new security… and you don't have a marker." Travis muttered.

"I do. It's just hidden. I have this small patch of material covering it; you can't even tell it's there." Michael explained, sighing as he rubbed his fingers over the patch on his face.

Travis audibly exhaled and glanced around the empty garage. "So… you got a marker and all that… what'd you do? How did you even get here?" Travis asked.

"I was part of a gang that stole Duel Runners. I got caught once. They gave me a criminal mark; I did a little time in the Facility and got out." Michael explained, lowering his head slightly. "But you don't want to know my life story… well, maybe you do. But I'm not in the mood to tell it right now."

"So you're a thief?" Travis asked bluntly.

"I suppose. I tried to involve myself as little as possible. It's just so that they wouldn't steal my Duel Runner." Michael explained, but Travis was still skeptical.

"So that girl you're with, what did she do?" Travis asked.

"She hasn't done anything!" Michael snapped.

"Whoa, whoa. Calm down. It was just a question." Travis said, raising his hands. "So that just leaves the last few questions. How did you get here and why?"

"I went to the port and asked a man named Rugal to give me a lift on his ship. I won a duel that almost cost me my life and he made good on his promise and brought me here. He's the one who gave me this patch and his invitation to this tournament. As for why I'm here, I'm looking for someone named Jared Valcrist." Michael answered, getting a little fed up with these questions.

"So you came here illegally and registered in the Fortune Cup just to try and find one guy? I say you've gone above and beyond the call of duty. What'd he do, pull you and everyone you cared about out of a burning building?" Travis asked, a smile playing on his lips.

"He gave me my deck." Michael muttered.

"That's your reason? Jesus, remind me to get you to owe me a favor." Travis laughed.

"Well it's not like my life in Satellite was going anywhere …" Michael sighed.

As Travis opened his mouth to say something further, the door at the end of the garage started to open. The two duelists watched with confused expressions as a man entered the garage. The man had crew-cut chestnut-brown hair and donned a plain black t-shirt and blue jeans.

"Who are you?" Travis asked.

"Julius, that's all you need to know." The man replied as he walked towards the duo, activating his duel disk.

"Listen pal, we're in the middle of a tournament. Hey security, what are you doing?" Travis shouted. The two security guards merely looked on with blank expressions.

"This is on the order of the Director." Julius stated.

"How can he order something like this?" Travis growled.

"If both of you duel me, I'll tell you. If not, you might just find some new offenses on your record." Julius smirked. Travis opened his mouth to protest, but the look on the man's face showed he wasn't joking.

"We don't have a choice in this, do we?" Michael asked in a quiet voice.

"No, you don't." Julius chuckled.

"Fine." Travis snarled. The fedora wearing duelist activated his duel disk, Michael doing the same next to him.

"Duel!" The trio shouted in unison.

**[Michael & Travis: 8000 / Julius: 8000]**

"I will only play with 8000 life points as time is of the essence for you two gentlemen, because of this you two will share 8000 life points. Mr. Aker will go, then myself, then you, then back to me. Rinse and repeat." Julius explained.

"So why did you want duel both of us so badly?" Michael asked as he drew his opening hand. "I set one monster face-down, set one card and end my turn."

"Honestly I was only supposed to duel you, but to make things more interesting I figured I'd include your friend." Julius said as a card shot out of his duel disk and into his waiting hand. "I activate the field spell Zera's Path."

Behind the crew-cut duelist a branching path appeared. The left side slopped down towards a different field spell Michael recognized as Pandemonium, while the other path was inclined upwards, towards the glowing form of yet another field spell he recognized, Sanctuary in the Sky.

"It's two field spells in one…?" Travis mumbled.

"That's mostly correct. Next, I call forth this field's namesake: Warrior of Zera." Julius said with a smirk.

A muscular warrior with a green armor, green gauntlets and a helmet of the same matching color that had red horns appeared. The warrior's sword had a strange hilt that was a strange blue color with what almost looked like a face with yellow eyes on it. [ATK: 1600]

"Now, for the effect of my field spell. While Warrior of Zera is on the field, this cards name can be treated as either Pandemonium or The Sanctuary in the Sky until the end of the turn. I pick Pandemonium." Julius said.

The field seemed to move down the path until they reached the heart of Pandemonium. The sky was orange and lightning struck the field at random intervals. Zera gave a dark smirk and a low chuckle as lightning crashed next to him.

"I tribute the Warrior of Zera on my field to special summon Mazera DeVille from my hand!" Julius announced as he slammed the monster onto his duel disk.

Zera's eyes widened in horror and the warrior dropped his sword and began clutching his head and screaming in pain. Two green demonic wings erupted from the warriors back as Zera's armor began to fuse to his body. His hands became claws and another pair of red horns erupted from the helmet. The warrior threw back his head and howled, lightning striking him moments later and completing his transformation. As the smoke cleared, a demonic version of Zera stood there, drool dripping out of his gaping maw. [ATK: 2800]

"Mazera DeVille's effect activates! Since Pandemonium is on the field, you each discard three random cards from your hand!" Julius announced.

Michael frowned as all but one of his cards slid into the graveyard. He looked at the only one that remained. Genex Gaia. Well, it could be worse.

"This is the path of darkness. Zera lost his sanity and his humanity to gain the power of the Archfiends. He can destroy his enemies before they even enter the battlefield. That is the power the path of darkness has granted him." Julius explained.

"That's wonderful, now can you move it along? As you said, time is of the essence." Travis said impatiently.

"Where are my manners? Of course I can. Mazera DeVille, attack Mr. Aker's face-down monster!" Julius commanded.

"Negate Attack!" Michael countered. Mazera stopped his attack and returned to his master's field.

"I set one card face-down and end my turn." Julius finished. Zera's Path left Pandemonium and returned to area with the branching paths.

"Draw. I summon Tuned Magician, and then I'll activate Double Summon to summon Dark Valkyria from my hand." Travis started.

The Dark Fairy-type monster appeared in front of Travis. [ATK: 1800] Next to him, a magician in a white and light green robe who was wearing a long yellow and green pointed hat appeared. The magician chuckled to itself as it spun its staff around. [ATK: 1800]

"Then, I'll use Unleash your Power to have all my Gemini monsters gain their effects, but any monster affected by this effect will be flipped face-down during my turns End Phase. This means Tuned Magician is now a Tuner and Dark Valkyria gains a Spell Counter and 300 attack points. I'll remove the Spell Counter she just gained to destroy Mazera DeVille." Travis explained. Dark Valkyria gained a Spell Counter, which it promptly turned into energy which it then used to destroy Mazera DeVille.

"I can see where this is going." Julius smiled.

"Heh. I tune my level four Tuned Magician to my level four Dark Valkyria!" Travis began as Tuned Magician became four green Synchro gates and Dark Valkyria became four stars. "Thundering cries will awaken this beast from his slumber! Crush everything in your path! Synchro Summon! The bringer of ruin and renewal, Black Brutdrago!"

A huge black armored dragon appeared in front of Travis. Black Brutdrago arms were large, but its hind legs were small. The dragon bellowed loudly and slammed both of its arms down onto the ground creating a small shockwave. [ATK: 3000]

"Black Brutdrago, attack him directly!" Travis commanded.

The dragon roared and exhaled burning hot flames over the opposing duelist.

**[Michael & Travis: 8000 / Julius: 5000]**

"That ends my turn." Travis finished.

"Draw." Julius stated as another card shot into his hand. "I activate Soul Resurrection to revive Warrior of Zera."

The muscular warrior re-appeared on the field. [ATK: 1600] With a snap of his fingers, Julius made the field change to the Sanctuary in the Sky.

"By tributing Warrior of Zera while Sanctuary in the Sky is in play, I can special summon Archlord Zerato from my hand." Julius smirked.

A radiant light enveloped Warrior of Zera and two white wings erupted from the monsters back. His skin took on a purple hue. That was the last of the transformation Michael saw before he was momentarily blinded by the light. When it faded, the new Fairy monster was standing in Zera's place. [ATK: 2800]

"Now I'll activate Zerato's effect. By discarding one Light monster from my hand, all of your monsters are destroyed." Julius chuckled as he discarded Zeradias, Herald of Heaven.

Zerato raised his sword and a white light enveloped it. Bringing the sword down, blades of glowing white energy shot out of his sword and sliced through all the monsters on Travis's and Michael's shared field. Black Brutdrago exploded and the image of the R-Genex Accelerator which Michael had set appeared and exploded seconds later.

"When Black Brutdrago is destroyed, I can special summon one Gemini monster from my graveyard and have it gain its effect. I summon Darkstorm Dragon." Travis muttered.

From the remains of Black Brutdrago, a thin black dragon rose up and summoned a small cyclone below itself. [DEF: 2500]

"Zera headed to the Sanctuary in the Sky where he gained the power of the angels, becoming Zeradias, Herald of Heaven. As time passed, he acquired even more power until he became an Archlord. Archlord Zerato. This is the path of light, which gave Zerato the power to destroy all evil that stood before him." Julius explained.

"Why are you telling us all of this?" Michael asked.

"You'll see. Next, I activate Advanced Ritual Art and send Archfiend Soldier and Ryu-Kishin Powered from my deck to the graveyard to ritual summon Zera the Mant!" Julius shouted.

A ghostly image of Warrior of Zera appeared. Two more ghostly images appeared behind the Warrior as he turned his sword upside down. The images of Archfiend Soldier and Ryu-Kishin Powered became orbs of black energy which flew into Zera's sword. The eyes on the hilt of the sword glowed and blue goo erupted forth from the sword and ensnared Zera. The goo covered the warrior and with a deathly scream a pillar of darkness rose up, only to broken by the hideous blue from of Zera the Mant emerging from it. [ATK: 2800]

"This is the path of forbidden power. In his quest to get stronger, Zera sacrificed himself to gain the powers of a dark deity. He's been corrupted even worse than he would have had he walked the path of darkness and became Mazera DeVille." Julius explained.

"Zera the Mant attacks Darkstorm Dragon!" Julius commanded. The blue monstrosity sliced through the last line of defense on the two duelists shared field.

"Go, Zerato! Direct attack!" Julius continued. The angelic warrior slashed its sword and a blade of energy shot towards the two duelists.

**[Michael & Travis: 5200 / Julius: 5000]**

"My turn is over." Julius finished. The field left the Sanctuary in the Sky and returned to the branching paths.

"Draw." Michael said. He stared at his drawn card in relief. Swing of Memories. He could use this to bring back the Genex Controller he discarded at the start of the match. "I summon Genex Gaia and then I'll activate Swing of Memories to special summon Genex Controller!"

A tall dark brown bipedal robot took the field. The robot wielded a scythe and stood perfectly still on the field. [ATK: 1000] Next to it, Michael's signature Tuner monster appeared. [ATK: 1400]

"I tune my level three Genex Gaia to my level three Genex Controller!" Michael started as both of his monsters rose up into the air. "The controller of the elements calls forth the impenetrable defense of the Earth! Mountains will create an impassable wall which no enemy shall pass! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Geo Genex!"

A huge brown floating robot appeared from the Synchro gates. Crossing its arms over its chest, Geo Genex turned blue due to being in defense position. [DEF: 2800]

"Turn end." Michael finished.

"Draw." Julius said as his duel disk ejected another card into his hand. The man scowled and shook his head. "I end my turn."

"Draw." Travis started. "Well Michael, it looks like you bought us the time we needed."

"What are you going on about?" Julius asked.

"I activate Monster Reborn to revive Black Brutdrago!" Travis grinned as the huge black dragon appeared behind its master. [ATK: 3000]

"Curses." Julius muttered under his breath.

"Black Brutdrago, destroy Archlord Zerato!" Julius commanded.

The dragon exhaled a torrent of flames which reduced the angelic warrior to ashes.

**[Michael & Travis: 5200 / Julius: 4800]**

"Your move, Jules." Travis chuckled.

"Draw." Julius said as his duel disk deposited another card into his hand. "I set one card face-down and switch Zera the Mant into defense mode. That will be all." Julius said as the blue beast crouched down. [DEF: 2300]

"Draw! I summon Genex Ally Bellflame!" Michael grinned. "Next, I'll switch Geo Genex into attack mode and activate its effect.

The red robot with the blue visor and flamethrowers mounted on both of its shoulders appeared. [ATK: 1700] Geo Genex uncovered its chest and bellowed loudly. [ATK: 1800] The Synchro monster glowed with a brown aura of energy which faded quickly, but the purpose of it became clear as Geo Genex's attack points rose. [ATK: 2800]

"How did you do that?" Julius demanded.

"When I control a level four or lower Genex monster, I can use Geo Genex's effect to switch his attack and defense until the End Phase as long as a level four or lower Genex monster is face-up. Now, Geo Genex! Crush Zera the Mant!" Travis ordered.

Pulling back its colossal fist, Geo Genex punched the hideous blue monster. The ritual monster gave one final, pathetic roar as it shattered into pieces leaving Julius exposed.

"Black Brutdrago, Bellflame! Attack him directly!" Michael continued.

The flames the two creatures shot out merged to create a great tidal wave of fire which washed over the field of their foe.

**[Michael & Travis: 5200 / Julius: 100]**

"Your move." Michael finished, smiling with satisfaction.

"Draw." Julius said, nodding his head as he stared at his draw. "I activate Faustian Bargain. I send one special summoned monster on either side of the field to the graveyard to special summon one level four or lower normal monster, like Archfiend Soldier, from my hand. Since your Black Brutdrago isn't destroyed, you won't get a replacement monster." Julius smirked.

The purple skinned monster cackled evilly as its hologram appeared on the field. The monsters biege cape fluttered about behind it despite the lack of wind. [ATK: 1900]

"Next, since I have four Dark monsters with different names in my graveyard, I can summon this card with one tribute. I tribute Archfiend Soldier to summon Darklord Zerato!"

An evil version of Archlord Zerato appeared. This version had black skin and red armor, and its wings were red and bat-like. [ATK: 2800]

"I activate Pot of Avarice. I return Warrior of Zera, Ryu-Kishin Powered, Archfiend Soldier, Archfiend Soldier and Mazera DeVille to the deck, shuffle the deck and draw two card…" Julius started, his voice trailing off as he drew two more cards. "I activate Riryoku. I halve the attack of your Geo Genex and add it to Darklord Zerato, bringing his total up to 3700." Julius said.

"Well this isn't good." Michael grumbled.

"I'll discard the Mazera DeVille I just drew to activate Darklord Zerato's effect, destroying all monsters on your side of the field." Slamming his sword into the ground, black energy shot forth from the sword towards the remaining two monsters. The monsters shrieked in terror as their bodies were enveloped dark energy. The energy faded away, taking the monsters with it as it disappeared.

"Damn it all." Travis cursed.

"This is the last path of Zera. The path of betrayal. One by one he felled his allies in the Sanctuary in the Sky, staining his wings red and transforming him into the monster before you. But enough of that, now for his effect, Zerato, direct attack." Julius ordered.

The Darklord flapped his red wings and charged forward, slicing both the Genex and the Gemini duelist across the chest.

**[Michael & Travis: 1500 / Julius: 100]**

"Michael… I hate to break it to you, but I don't think I have anything left in my deck that can defeat his Darklord." Travis sighed.

"The path of betrayal took its toll on the Darklord, and after using the strength he once used to vanquish evil to vanquish good, he couldn't live with himself." Julius said. As the words were leaving his mouth, Zerato shattered into several holographic pieces.

"He… destroyed himself?" Michael asked.

"After using his effect, Darklord Zerato is destroyed during my End Phase. So if you can draw a monster, Mr. Martell, this is the end of the line for me. But know that if you don't, every monster in my deck has more than 1500 attack points." Julius said.

"Well, every monster in my deck has more than 100 attack points." Travis said coldly.

"Touché. But will you be able to draw one?" Julius asked. Travis went silent and stared at his deck for a moment.

"…Draw!" Travis shouted, drawing the top card from his deck. He didn't look at it for a few seconds, but when he finally turned it over his face lit up. "Yes! I summon Magical Reflect Slime!"

A blueish-purple slime formed on Travis's field, a small smile crossing Julius's face as it formed. [ATK: 700]

"So this is as far as I go." The opposing duelist chuckled. Just to know how close he would've come to victory, he picked up the top card of his deck and smiled. It was Warrior of Zera. Returning it back to the top of the deck he looked up at Travis and waited for the final attack order.

"Magical Reflect Slime, direct attack!" Travis commanded.

The slime flew forward and latched onto Julius's duel disk, draining the last of the Zera duelist's life points.

**[Michael & Travis: 1500 / Julius: 0]**

"Alright, so what's the big deal? Why did you come here and what's with all this 'path' stuff?" Michael asked, taking a few steps towards the defeated duelist.

"My task was to keep you occupied so you'd miss Demetri's match." The crew-cut duelist admitted.

"That's a dirty trick!" Travis shouted.

"An order is an order," Julius shrugged. Now let me ask you a question, Mr. Aker."

"What?" Michael asked warily.

"I showed you the paths of Zera. The path of light, the path of darkness, the path of forbidden power and the path of betrayal. Which one will you walk?" Julius asked.

"From what I've seen, those paths only lead to darkness or destruction. I'd rather not walk any of them." Michael answered.

"Haha… just as I expected. Looks like you'll remain an enigma until the end." Julius laughed.

"An enigma until…" Michael glared at Julius as he started putting the pieces together. "You're working with Tabitha then! You guys still won't believe me! I keep telling you, I'm not associated with that guy in any way!" Michael shouted, clenching his fist.

"Ah… I trust your words. He might not however. But let me warn you of one thing. I posed Cain the same question I posed to you. He told me would walk all of the paths to obtain a power like no other. A puzzling answer, but he's walked three of them already…" Julius said, his voice trailing off at the end.

"Cain… You mean the King said he'd walk the path of light, darkness, forbidden power and betrayal?" Travis asked. Michael made a mental note that the Kings real name was Cain and he could now put a face to the pictures he'd seen which had labeled him as the King without giving his name.

"Yes…" Julius said. The crowd outside of the garage erupted into deafening cheer and the MC's voice boomed loudly proclaiming that the match was over and Demetri was the victor.

"Damn it. I'm going up against him and I have no idea what to expect." Travis said, cursing under his breath.

"My time is up, I must go." Julius said. He left without another word, the Tabitha and the male security guard who had been watching the duel closing the garage door behind him.

"Will Gale Brenner and Michael Aker please report to the track?" The MC asked.

"Come on, you're up." Travis said, patting Michael on the back. The Genex duelist smiled and mounted his Duel Runner, already exiting out onto the track as Gale was entering the garage. About a minute passed before Gale's Duel Runner pulled up next to him.

_Back in the stands…_

"Tch. I should be the one down there dueling Gale." Warren growled. The large duelist had headed up into the stands and took a seat in front of Rugal.

"Oh calm down. I want to see how he'll be able to cope against this one's strategy." Rugal chuckled. "Now, Michael Aker, will you continue to surprise me?"

* * *

><p>Zera's Path<br>Field Spell

While you control a face-up "Warrior of Zera" you can have this cards name be treated as "Pandemonium" or "The Sanctuary in the Sky" until the End Phase.

* * *

><p>So its been awhile, but life can be like that. Also when I reading through this chapter again I noticed I'd main two pretty large mistakes in both of the duels, so I had to rewrite quite a bit. But hopefully you enjoyed this. That's all from me, so I'll wish you a good day and see you all next time.<p> 


	11. Chapter 11: Deadly Winds

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000, SPC: 0 / Gale: 8000, SPC: 0]**

Michael shot forward, easily passing Gale who didn't appear to be making an effort to take the first turn. In a rather anti-climactic 'race', Michael took the first turn with relative easy. Both duel runners beeped and their Speed Counters increased by one.

"Draw… I set one card and one monster. That ends my turn." Michael said. It was another simple opening move, but with Genex Searcher and Synchro Material set, he was all but guaranteed a Synchro monster on his next turn. He glanced back to look at his opponent. He could barely make out Gale's face, but with his eyes half closed the boy looked like he didn't want to be here at all. He looked like he wanted to go to sleep.

"Draw," Gale muttered. "I summon Dragunity Pilum. Pilum's effect lets me special summon one Winged-Beast Dragunity monster from my hand and equip it with Dragunity Pilum. I'll summon Dragunity Militum."

A small green dragon with black armor on it's just and a spike coming out of the helmet on its head took the field. [ATK: 1400] A small hurricane appeared next to Pilum and Militum appeared. Militum was a humanoid creature, who held a short sword and was wearing thin armor and a green helmet. Militum flapped its silver wings that were trimmed with dark green. [ATK: 1700] The moment after Militum appeared, Pilum transformed into a green-and-black heavy javelin which Militum took a hold of.

"Pilum's effect activates. The equipped monster can attack directly, but the battle damage you receive as a result is halved." Gale said quietly.

Raising the heavy javelin, Militum threw it right over the set card Michael had played and struck the back of the Genex duelist's duel runner.

**[Michael: 7150, SPC: 1 / Gale: 8000, SPC: 1]**

"During my Main Phase 2, I activate the effect of Dragunity Militum to special summon the equipped Dragunity Pilum." Gale said.

A strong breeze blew and Militum released its grip on the javelin, which transformed back into Dragunity Pilum. [ATK: 1400]

"Next, I tune my level three Dragunity Pilum to my level four Dragunity Militum." Gale announced as the two monsters rose up into the air. "Legendary warriors and mythical beasts, side by side, will bring forth my victory! Crush their morale with your great power! Synchro Summon! Rise up, Dragunity Knight - Trident!"

A huge blue dragon burst on the field. The dragon roared and thrashed about while the monster who was riding on the beast – Michael though the recognized it as a different Dragunity he'd seen in Gale's last match – pulled on the reigns to calm it down. [ATK: 2400]

"Next, I set three cards face-down and activate Trident's effect. Once per turn, I can send up to three cards I control to send the number of cards from your Extra Deck to the graveyard. I'll send all three of the cards I just set to the graveyard." Gale said, a smirk spreading across his face.

_Back in the stands…_

"What's so bad about sending cards from the Extra Deck to the graveyard? Can't you just use Monster Reborn or something similar to bring them back?" Kali asked.

"Nope," Tasha said, shaking her head. "If the monster wasn't summoned properly first, you can't special summon it from the graveyard. So unless your friend pulls a Pot of Avarice or something, Gale just put those cards out of his reach."

_Back in the stadium…_

"I know all about your Genex Synchros. So the three I'll send to the graveyard are… Locomotion, Vindikite and Axel!" Gale declared.

Trident roared and formed his namesake weapon in his hand. Launching it forward, it split into three tridents each of which struck the holographic image of the declared card.

"Damn it." Michael cursed. His plan had fallen apart at the seam. Genex Searcher was still set and in one fell swoop, Michael lost all of the cards he could've used Trident as Synchro material for.

"Next, two of the cards I sent to the graveyard were Dragunity Armory. When Dragunity Armory is sent from the field to the graveyard by a monster effect, I can draw one card." Gale explained as he drew two cards. "That'll do, it's your move."

"Draw!" Michael announced, pulling a card from his deck. A quick glance over his hand revealed he couldn't take down the Dragunity Knight that was behind him. Not yet, anyway. "I set one monster and end my turn." Michael said.

"I've got you on the run now…" Gale smirked as both of their Speed Counters increased to four. "Draw! I activate Speed Spell – Cards of Consonance! When I have three or more Speed Counters, I can discard one Dragon-type Tuner with 1000 or less attack points to draw two cards. I discard Dragunity Phalanx."

"Damn it all…" Michael cursed. If Gale was going to repeat what he did against his last opponent then that meant Dragunity Dux was coming next.

"I summon Dragunity Dux! Then, I use the effect of Dragunity Dux to equip it with the Dragunity Phalanx in my graveyard!" Gale declared.

A half-man half-bird hybrid known as Dragunity Dux came onto the field. Raising its hand, the image of Dragunity Phalanx appeared. The Dragunity Tuner contorted its body into a pike, which lowered itself into Dux's hand. [ATK: 1500 – 2100]

"Dragunity Dux gains 200 attack points for every 'Dragunity' card on the field, including equip spells. So, Dragunity Dux! Attack the monster he just set!" Gale ordered.

Dux flew into the air and speared the set monster Michael had played the last turn with deadly precision. The tormented image of Genex Gaia appeared briefly, before the card shattered into pieces.

"Trident! Get the other one!" Gale continued.

Trident formed his namesake weapon again and speared the other set monster on Michael's field. Genex Searcher chuckled softly as its body was ripped apart by explosions. In Searcher's place R-Genex Accelerator appeared. With no more attacks left, it would be safe for at least one turn. [ATK: 1500]

"During my Main Phase, I use Dragunity Phalanx's effect to special summon itself. Then, I tune my level two Dragunity Phalanx to my level four Dragunity Dux!" Gale said, raising his hand as the two monsters rose into the air, Phalanx turning into two Synchro gates and Dux into four stars. "These two fight together, not as servant and master, but as equals! Their teamwork will pave the way to my victory! Synchro Summon! Rise up, Dragunity Knight - Vajrayana!"

Dragunity Knight – Vajrayana appeared, bringing with it a gust of wind so powerful that Michael thought he might literally be blown away. But thankfully the winds subsided so Michael could get a good look at the orange dragon, which he could swear was being ridden by Dragunity Militum. The dragon raised its hand and the familiar form of Dragunity Phalanx appeared, transforming into a pike which Vajrayana wasted no time in snatching out of the air. [ATK: 1900]

"Moving along, I set two cards and use Trident's effect sending all three of the cards in my back row to the graveyard. Let's get rid of… Thermal Genex, Geo Genex and Windmill Genex." Gale grinned.

Trident speared three more of his cards, dwindling Michael's options for a counter-attack. There weren't that many cards he had left he could make a proper comeback with now.

"Your move." Gale said loudly.

"Draw… Yes! R-Genex Accelerator's effect activates, letting my summon Genex Solar from my hand!" Michael grinned, a sliver of hope returning.

The orange form of Genex Solar formed on the field, emitting a bright glow as it turned to face down the two Dragunity Knights. [ATK: 2500]

"So that Accelerator lets you summon regardless of level… how troublesome." Gale muttered.

"Alright, next I summon Genex Undine. I send another Undine from my deck to the graveyard to add Genex Controller to my hand. I won't use Accelerator's effect. Next, I use Speed Spell – Double Summon. When I have two or more Speed Counters, I can gain one more normal summon for the turn." Michael continued. "I'll tribute Genex Undine to summon Genex Army!"

The blue form of Genex Undine appeared for mere seconds before it was replaced with the larger form of Genex Army, a large hulking robot in camouflage armor with a rocket launcher mounted on its shoulder. [ATK: 2300]

"Now, since a Genex monster I control was sent to the graveyard I can inflict 500 points of damage to you." Michael started.

Genex Solar fired a burst of yellow energy from its chest which flew towards Gale and crashed into the Dragunity player's duel runner.

**[Michael: 7150, SPC: 5 / Gale: 7500, SPC: 5]**

"Next, since Genex Army was tribute summoned using a Genex monster, I can destroy one monster on your side of the field. I think it's clear which one I'm picking." Michael smirked.

Gale watched with mild annoyance as Trident was blown apart by Genex Army's rockets. More importantly, Vajrayana, his last line of defense wasn't going to be holding up much longer against the opposing monsters.

"Genex Solar attacks Dragunity Knight – Vajrayana!" Michael declared.

Genex Solar flew towards the large red Dragon, hovering in front of it while its jaws snapped at it. Crossing its arms over its chest for a few moments, Genex Solar glowed with an intense light. When the Machine-type monster finally uncrossed its arms, the audience was temporarily blinded by how bright the released light was. When their vision cleared, Vajrayana was gone.

**[Michael: 7150, SPC: 5 / Gale: 6900, SPC: 5]**

"Genex Army and R-Genex Accelerator attack directly!" Michael finished.

Gale's duel runner was pelted by rockets and lasers, which he did his best to avoid while continuing to drive forward. The messy haired duelist didn't seem at all deterred by losing two of his Synchro monsters. If anything, he seemed more interested in the battle.

**[Michael: 7150, SPC: 5 / Gale: 3100, SPC: 5]**

"Turn end." Michael said.

"What a comeback! In just one turn, Michael Aker was managed to wipe his opponent's field clean! How will Gale respond to this?" The MC shouted from the booth.

"Draw," Gale began "I activate Speed Spell – Stardust Shimmer. By removing 5 Speed Counters, I can select one Dragon-type Synchro monster in my graveyard and special summon it by removing from play other monsters in my graveyard whose levels equal the selected monsters. I select Trident and remove Pilum and Militum!"

The space above the two duelists began to shimmer as Gale fell further behind due to losing several Speed Counters. But from the shimmering lights, Dragunity Knight – Trident descended onto the battlefield once more. [ATK: 2400]

"But that's not all. I summon Dragunity Aklys from my hand." Gale smiled. "Dragunity Aklys will let me special summon one Dragunity monster from my hand and equip it with Aklys. I summon Dragunity Arma Leyvaten!"

Dragunity Aklys appeared, squawking loudly before the huge form of Dragunity Arma Leyvaten appeared behind it. Leyvaten was orange, with bird-like wings and black chest armor. The Dragon wielded a long, black sword and roared loudly as Aklys transformed into a small, silver javelin which Leyvaten grasped. [ATK: 2600]

"Leyvaten's effect missed the timing, but I can still use Trident's effect! I send Aklys to the graveyard to send Genex Ally Triforce to the graveyard!" Gale declared.

One more card slid out of Michael's Extra Deck and into the graveyard. He'd lost seven so far, leaving him with only three Synchro monsters.

"Aklys effect activates! When he's sent to the graveyard while equipped to a Dragunity monster, I can destroy on card on the field! I destroy Genex Solar!" Gale laughed.

The small silver javelin that was Dragunity Aklys appeared. The javelin shot forward like a bullet and pierced Genex Solar's chest. The Machine-type monster groaned as sparks flew from its chest before its body finally exploded from excessive damage.

**[Michael: 7150, SPC: 6 / Gale: 3100, SPC: 1]**

"Trident attacks Genex Army, and Leyvaten attacks Accelerator!" Gale commanded.

Michael's machines were ripped apart by the savage Dragunity monsters, but he still had almost double the amount of life points as his foe.

**[Michael: 5950, SPC: 6 / Gale: 3100, SPC: 1]**

"Your move." Gale finished.

"Draw." Michael said. He took a deep breath to try and calm himself. His hand was pretty undesirable. Genex Controller, Genex Ally Reliever and Dark Bribe. He could try and use Speed World 2 to draw into one more card, but what could he do with it? If it was a monster, it would just serve as basic defense while he lost all his Speed Counters. Even if he pulled Call of the Haunted, none of his fallen monsters were strong enough to ward off an attack from Leyvaten. It was a grim situation.

"Well? Are you going?" Gale demanded.

"…I set one card face-down and end my turn." Michael said quietly.

"Ha! My move!" Gale grinned, drawing from his deck. Michael glanced behind him at his opponent. Those eyes weren't the same ones he'd seen at the beginning of the match of someone who just wanted to go back to sleep. These were the eyes of an awakened lion.

"If Gale draws a monster, this could be the end for Mr. Aker!" The MC announced. The crowd subconsciously leaned forward in anticipation.

"Hmph. I attack directly with Leyvaten and Trident!" Gale snarled.

Leyvaten slashed the back of his duel runner with Trident threw a projectile, which Michael assumed was the creature's namesake weapon, at his back tire.

**[Michael: 950, SPC: 9 / Gale: 3100, SPC: 3]**

"Looks like Michael will get one more turn to try and turn the tables!" The MC announced.

"Not quite!" Gale declared proudly as he slid a card into his duel runner. "Speed Spell – Sonic Buster!"

"Oh my! Sonic Buster, at the cost of two Speed Counters, will inflict damage to Michael equal to half the attack of one of Gale's monsters! It's all over!" The MC announced.

A fierce storm surrounded Leyvaten. The orange dragon roared and charged forward while Gale fell further behind. Michael's heart was pounding in his chest as he pressed the button to activate his trap. The wind around Leyvaten slowly dispersed, leaving the orange beast powerless to continue.

"What?" Gale asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Dark Bribe negates your card and destroys it! But you get to draw one card. Then, since I negated the effect of one of your Spell, Trap, or Monster effects I can special summon this card from my hand! Genex Ally Reliever!" Michael announced.

A sky blue robot with a flight pack and rocket boots took the field. The new machine also had a black visor that completely obscured its face from view. Crossing its arms, the monster hovered in the air and watched its foes intently. [ATK: 2200]

"You're just delaying the inevitable." Gale said, shaking his head as he drew his card. A smile spread across his face as he put it into play.

The hybrid form of Dragunity Dux appeared and Michael's heart sank a little further as he knew for certain what was coming. Indeed, as Dux appeared so did the pike form of Dragunity Phalanx, who special summoned itself onto the field using its own effect. [ATK: 1500 – 2300] [ATK: 500]

"Now I tune my level two Dragunity Phalanx to my level four Dragunity Dux!" Gale announced as once again the two monsters from into the air. "Constant battle creates this unbreakable bond between the fallen and those still standing! Show them the power of unity and carry us to victory! Synchro Summon! Rise up, Dragunity Knight - Gae Bulg!"

Dragunity Knight - Gae Bulg appeared from the Synchro gates and roared loudly as the rider, Dragunity Dux, tried to control the new monster. The Gae Bulg himself was a slim white dragon which Michael thought reminded him just a little of the legendary Rainbow Dragon. [ATK: 2000]

"Alright… Gae Bulg can increase its attack if selected as an attack target. Since it's the weakest, he's most likely to go after this one… He can't win." Gale whispered to himself.

"Draw." Michael said. His eyes widened when he saw his draw. His heart started to beat a little faster as he checked over what he had. Yes, he could do this. "I summon R-Genex Overseer, who lets me summon Genex Controller from my hand!"

Overseer appeared, raising his arms and calling out Controller alongside him. [ATK: 200] [ATK: 1400]

"What's the point? You summoned two Tuners when you have nothing good left you can summon with them!" Gale scoffed.

"…No, there is one card." Michael said. "I tune my level two R-Genex Overseer and my level three Genex Controller to my level five Genex Ally Reliever!"

"You can't use two Tuners!" Gale protested.

"You can when the card calls for it!" Michael countered. The two Tuners became five Synchro gates and Reliever became five stars. What happened next was different from the usual Synchro summon. The Synchro gates turned horizontally and a green energy connected all of them, forming a cylinder with the five stars inside. The five stars began to move inside the cylinder, bouncing off the walls and into each other, faster and faster creating an almost blinding light inside.

"The opposite of life itself composes itself and creates this new entity! Come forth and reduce everything to nothing! Synchro Summon! Appear now, R-Genex Antimatter!"

The cylinder exploded and in the shining light was a dark figure. It appeared to be a black version of Genex Ally Axel, except bits of the body were slowly drifting off, fading out of existence. The creature raised its head and snarled, whipping around and roaring as it took in the sight of the draconic enemies his opponent controlled. [ATK: 0]

"What the hell is that?" Gale shouted. "I've never heard of any 'R-Genex Antimatter'!"

_Back in the stadium office…_

"So… it is that deck." Reynar said, shaking his head slowly.

"That's the card that shouldn't exist?" Everest asked. "And hey, if it shouldn't exist how is it here now anyway?"

"Indeed, that is the card. An… old colleague of mine and I conducted an experiment that involved a certain type of energy. One of the tests involved putting in a blank card to be bombarded with this energy. _That _was the result." Reynar explained, nodding down at the evil, twisted version of Axel.

"Well how in the hell did he get it then?" Everest asked, scratching his head.

"The only he could've gotten a hold of that card is if Rugal gave it to him." Reynar answered. Everest's face darkened at the mention of Rugal's name and both men returned to watching the duel silently.

_Back in the stadium…_

"R-Genex Antimatter, attack Dragunity Arma Leyvaten!" Michael commanded.

"Why? Your monster has no attack points!" Gale asked.

"When Antimatter attacks, all your monsters are destroyed and you take damage equal to their combined attack points!" Michael announced.

"What?" Gale shouted. The Dragunity duelist stared wide-eyed at the oncoming monstrosity and did the only thing he could do. Wait for the end.

Antimatter jumped into the air and as he descended, the creature's arms detached, one falling down and grabbing Trident and the other grabbing Gae Bulg. The arms slowly dissolved, the dragons roaring in pain as their bodies also dissolved. Antimatter's torso slammed right into Leyvaten, who howled in pain and tried to remove the mechanical monster, but his arm dissolved the second he came into contact with it. Slowly, the howls of the beasts died down as all three Dragunity monsters disappeared from the field.

**[Michael: 950, SPC: 10 / Gale: 0, SPC: 4]**

_In the stands…_

"Ohoho… so that's where that old deck got to." Rugal chuckled.

_Back in the stadium…_

"In a surprise turnabout, Michael Aker has made his way into the semi-finals! Now, for the next quarter-final match! Will Travis Martell and Demetri Bure please report to the dueling field?" The MC asked.

As Michael exited the stadium and re-entered the garage, he felt a wave of exhaustion pass over him. He parked his duel runner and closed his eyes momentarily, loving the few seconds of darkness. He dismounted and walked up the stairs; passing Travis while mumbling out something he hoped came out as a message of good luck. Before the announcer could even start the next match, Michael was asleep on the couch.

He didn't dream. He just slowly regained his energy while time passed and the duel raged on the screen ahead of him. One particularly loud moment startled Michael awake, the Genex duelist quickly remembering his surroundings and what was going on. That was right; he was participating in a tournament.

Unfortunately, the sight that greeted him on the television wasn't one he was happy to see.

_Back in the stadium…_

**[Travis: 700 / Demetri: 5800]**

The Gemini duelist had a look of pure terror on his face. The camera zoomed out to show that Travis had Black Brutdrago on his field while Demetri had some black dragon he couldn't put a name to. Without a card, Demetri placed a card on his duel disk.

The monster had golden armor on its upper torso and its head was covered by a similarly covered cloak with only the creature's twin yellow eyes visible. The creature's dark colored cape fluttered behind it, but the strange thing was that below the golden armor the creature's body seemed to be composed entirely of darkness. [ATK: 1200]

"This is the end. Good-bye." Demetri said with the same blank expression as always plastered on his face.

The images of seven cards appeared in front of the evil-looking monster. The seven cards merged with the creature's body, the creature howling as its power increased up to… 4000? Once again, the camera panned to Travis who had a look of real terror in his eyes.

Demetri merely raised his hand and the newly powered up monster raised its arms, palms pointing towards Black Brutdrago. A sphere of dark energy, with sparks flying from it, appeared in front of the creature's palm, growing larger and larger as the seconds passed. When it was finally a satisfactory size, the monster roared and pushed his arm forward, sending the form flying into the chest of Black Brutdrago. The orb expanded, the Synchro monster roaring in agony as the orb covered the entire body of the Dragon-type monster. It began to collapse in on itself, becoming the size of a pin and then disappeared. A shockwave shot out from where the sphere had been, draining the last of Travis's life points.

**[Travis: 0 / Demetri: 5800]**

"That's it! Through blocking his opponent off at every turn, Demetri secures himself a spot in the semi-finals against Michael Aker! We'll have a brief, ten minute break. So stretch your legs, get a snack and get ready to see which of these two duelists will triumph and get a chance to face the King!" The MC announced.

Travis exited the stadium and Michael could only assume his friend was heading up into the stands. Demetri didn't move. The black haired duelist stood perfectly rooted to his spot, waiting for the time when his next match would begin.

_Back in the stadium office…_

Julius entered the office and swiftly moved to stand with Reynar, Christine and the others.

"Well?" Christine asked.

"I lost. I am in one piece, however. No harm came to me from any psychic powers he may have possessed." Julius answered.

"…Well, you did your job." Reynar said. "But this kids motives are really starting to annoy me."

"Maybe he hasn't been lying or concealing anything. Perhaps this has all been coincidence." Julius said.

"…Nghhh. Too many ifs and maybes. All I know for certain is he has Rugal's invitation and that deck." Reynar said. The older man blinked a few times, grumbled, and wiped his forehead with his sleeve.

"Feeling alright?" Christine asked.

"I'll be fine." Reynar reassured her.

_Back in the stands…_

"You know… if this Michael fellow defeats even Demetri, and depending on how he does against Cain, I might just confirm Reynar's suspicions and take him under my wing." Rugal chuckled.

"But-" Jehan tried to protest.

"Remember your place." Rugal said, fixing the red-haired boy with a stern glare. Jehan fell back in his seat grumbling while the headphones wearer chuckled to themself.

_Elsewhere in the stands…_

"Well, I'm sure he had a blast while he was down there." Kali said, trying to be optimistic.

"I… I really don't think he did. Didn't you see how terrified he was? Those creatures look like they really got to him." Tasha murmured.

"I'm hoping he was still able to enjoy himself…" Kali said, realizing that sentence didn't make much sense given this context.

"Maybe your friend will have a better time against that gu-… he's still just standing there." Tasha said, pointing down onto the field. Kali followed Tasha's outstretched finger and saw that Demetri was indeed still standing on the field.

"That's it! The 10 minutes is up! Please return to your seats as the semi-finals match will now commence will Michael Aker and De- Oh he's already there. Will Michael Aker please report to the dueling field?" The MC asked.

_In the lobby…_

Michael lifted himself off of the couch; feel slightly more rejuvenated after his nap. He made his way down and out into the stadium, where the crowd applauded his arrival. Taking his place opposite Demetri, the Genex duelist activated his duel disk while Demetri did the same. The tiniest of smirks crossed the black-haired duelist's face, who raised his head to stare at Michael.

"I'm going to enjoy this…" Demetri chuckled.

* * *

><p>Dragunity Armory<br>Normal Trap

If this face-down is sent to the graveyard by a monster effect while you control a face-up 'Draguntiy' monster, draw one card.

* * *

><p>R-Genex Antimatter<br>Level 10  
>DARK<br>Machine/Synchro/Effect

0/0

2 Genex Tuners + 1 or more non-Genex tuners

This card is not treated as a DARK monster while it is face-up on the field. This card cannot be special summoned except by Synchro Summon. While this card is face-up on the field, other monsters you control cannot declare an attack. If this card attacks, destroy all monsters your opponent controls and inflict damage to them equal to the attack of the destroyed monster(s) before damage calculation. At the end of the battle phase of the turn this card declared an attack, remove it from play.

* * *

><p>I've had this done for about uhh… four days now? Honestly, what prevents me from posting these as soon as I have them done is summon chants. It's difficult for me to come up with decent ones, but I try. I thought these ones were pretty acceptable, hopefully you did too. I've been looking forward to the next chapter for a decent while, so I'll have some fun with that. If you want to review and all that fun stuff, it would be appreciated. That's all from me, so I'll see you all next time. Hope you have yourselves a fine day!<p> 


	12. Chapter 12: Dark Eruption

Michael walked over to Demetri's side of the field and the two had a quick match of Rock-Paper-Scissors which ended in Michael's defeat, so that meant that Demetri got the first move. The two duelists stared at each other for a moment before they drew their opening hand and said that one word:

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000 / Demetri: 8000]**

"Set three, end." Demetri said quietly.

"Draw," Michael started. While the three face-downs were a concern, he didn't want to hold back. If they were traps, better to get them out of the way now. "I activate Instant Fusion; paying 1000 life points to special summon Flame Swordsman from my extra deck!"

**[Michael: 7000 / Demetri: 8000]**

From a swirling portal Flame Swordsman emerged. The Warrior-type monster slashed at the air with its red sword while the crowd cheered, Flame Swordsman being a fairly well-known card. [ATK: 1800]

"Then, I summon Genex Ally Remote!" Michael continued.

A white egg-shaped robot with two red eyes and a remote on the end of one of its hands appeared next to Flame Swordsman. [ATK: 500]

"Then, I tune my level three Genex Ally Remote to my level five Flame Swordsman!" Michael announced as the two monsters rose into the air, Remote turning into three stars and Flame Swordsman into its orange wire-frame. "The controller of the elements calls forth the power of searing flames! Synchro Summon! The flame burns through the darkness nights and harshest storms, Thermal Genex!"

Thermal shot out from the Synchro gates and slowly floated down onto Michael's side of the field. The blue robot was shooting blue flames out from various parts of its body as it stared down Demetri. [ATK: 2400 - 2600]

"Thermal Genex gains 200 extra attack points for every Fire monster in my graveyard. Now go! Thermal Genex attack, him directly!" Michael commanded.

Thermal raised its arms and shot flames towards the black-haired duelist, but Demetri pressed a button on his duel disk and one of his traps rose up. Michael grimaced as he recognized it as Negate Attack. Well, at least it was better than Mirror Force.

"I end my turn." Michael finished.

"During your End Phase, I activate Fires of Doomsday to give me two Doomsday tokens. These token cannot be used for the tribute summon of a monster other than a Dark monster." Demetri said monotonously, almost as if he was reading it off of an index card.

The two tokens, whose bodies appeared to be made of black flames, flew out from the image of the two Doomsday tokens. Each had a single eye in the center of their head. [DEF: 0]

"Draw. I activate Precious Cards from Beyond. Next, I'll tribute both of my Doomsday Tokens to summon Diabolos, King of the Abyss." Demetri said.

The two tokens merged together, transforming into a pillar of dark fire. One clawed hand emerged from the pillar of flames, then another. With a horrifying roar the flames dissipated, revealing the form of the dragon Michael had seen on the television earlier. The dragon was black and silver, with dark red, almost brown, wings. [ATK: 2800]

"Precious Cards from Beyond lets me draw two cards when I successfully tribute summon a monster that needs two or more tributes. Then, Ectoplasmer and Kaiser Colosseum." Demetri said as he placed the two cards into his duel disk.

The stands changed color, becoming a bright orange. In the center of the dueling field there was a shining yellow light.

_Back in the stands…_

"Yep, this is the combo that got me."

Kali and Tasha turned their heads to see Travis standing next to them. The Gemini duelist leaned over and gave Tasha a quick kiss before falling down into one of the seats.

"Yeah… it's pretty ruthless. Diabolos can't be tributed, Kaiser Colosseum prevents your opponent from having more monsters than you and Ectoplasmer forces you to tribute a monster each turn. So Michael won't be able to Synchro summon, and even if he does get something strong enough to beat Diabolos, he'll lose it to Ectoplasmer." Tasha agreed.

"What exactly had you so terrified before?" Kali asked.

"It's… hard to explain." Travis said, furrowing his brow. "The way he plays, the way he talks, his eyes… it all contributes to it."

_Back in the stadium…_

"Diabolos, get rid of that mechanical abomination." Demetri ordered.

"Scrap-Iron Scarecrow negates your attack!" Michael countered.

"Royal Decree negates your trap." Demetri countered as the continuous trap card rose up.

The dark dragon flew forward and stabbed Thermal through the chest with one its clawed hands. As the beast tore his claws out, Thermal exploded. With what Michael could've sworn was a satisfied smirk, Diabolos returned to Demetri's field.

**[Michael: 6800 / Demetri: 8000]**

"Go." Demetri finished.

"Dra-"

"Diabolos's monster effect activates. Before you draw, I can look at the top card of your deck and choose to put it either at the top or bottom of your deck." Demetri explained as he walked towards the Genex duelist. Picking up the top card of his opponents deck, Demetri nodded slowly to himself and put it on the bottom of the deck.

"Good luck, I'll get you no matter what you draw." Demetri said, chuckling softly as he took his place on his side of the field.

"…Draw." Michael said. He couldn't summon more than one monster, which meant he couldn't get past Diabolos with any Genex monster unless he could boost them with Limiter Removal or something similar. "I set one monster face-down and end my turn." Michael sighed.

"You're starting to realize how futile this is, aren't you?" Demetri asked. "No matter how much you struggle, you'll meet the same end as everyone else."

Michael bit his lip subconsciously and glanced down at his hand. He could turn this around. Yeah, definitely. But even as he told himself this the voice of doubt at the back of his head was growing larger.

"Come, Malice Doll of Demise." Demetri said.

A wooden, child-like puppet with dirty blond hair and dark blue overalls appeared next to the dark dragon. In the dolls hand it clutched a huge axe. [ATK: 1700]

"Mystic Plasma Zone. It grants all Dark monsters 500 attack points at the cost of 400 defense points." Demetri continued as he put the field spell into his duel disk.

The sky above the stadium became dark purple, electricity discharging from the air at random. Two bolts descended from above and struck Diabolos and Malice Doll of Demise, increasing their strength to 3300 and 2200 respectively.

"Malice Doll of Demise, attack his set monster." Demetri ordered.

The doll flew forward and cleaved the set monster in half with one swing of its axe. The broken form of Genex Ally Crusher appeared for a few brief seconds before it disappeared, leaving Michael to face Diabolos alone.

"Go, Diabolos. Direct attack." Demetri continued.

The huge dragon took its time, slowly making its way across the field until it was only a few feet away from Michael. The Genex duelist looked up at the dragon, the voice of doubt in his head growing larger. The dragons inhaled deeply, wisps of black fire seeping out of its mouth.

Michael took a step back unintentionally. Just as the dragon exhaled, a thought struck the brown-haired duelist. What if this guy was like Vincent? He was certainly seemed like someone who would have those powers. When the flames hit him, he flinched and raised his arms to cover his face. But there was no pain, there was no heat. It was just holograms.

**[Michael: 3500 / Demetri: 8000]**

"During my End Phase, Ectoplasmer activates. I tribute Malice Doll of Demise to inflict damage equal to half of its original attack, so 850, to you." Demetri finished.

A white aura surrounded the doll monster, which began to struggle and groan. The white aura slowly rose up, taking the form of a ghostly version of Malice Doll of Demise. The body of the doll monster collapsed into a heap and disappeared. The ghostly version shot forward and struck Michael in the chest, the Genex duelist once again pre-emptively flinching.

**[Michael: 2650 / Demetri: 8000]**

_Back in the stands…_

"That's what I was talking about." Travis said, nodding down at the playing field. "See the way he flinched? Like he thought he was going to get hurt? That's what happens. You know they're holograms, but when you duel him this voice at the back of your head starts psyching you out into thinking maybe his creatures are real and you're actually in danger."

"Well... Michael actually got pretty injured during a duel before." Kali admitted.

"What?" Tasha asked, turning to face the blonde.

"Yeah, he played against this one guy to get here and he got hurt pretty badly. Plus, didn't you see when he fought against that guy who used Phantom Beasts? They both knocked each other to the ground." Kali explained.

"Maybe some people can just take this game to a different level." Travis muttered.

_Back in the stadium…_

Before Michael drew, Demetri walked over and picked up the top card of Michael's deck. If he was happy, he didn't show it. It was Limiter Removal. He put the card on the bottom of Michael's deck and returned to his side of the field.

"Draw." Michael said quietly. A small smile crossed his lips when he saw his draw. "Heavy Storm!"

"It won't matter in the end." Demetri said, not seeming to care as he lost five cards to Heavy Storm.

The huge storm absorbed the dark clouds of Mystic Plasma Zone, the Kaiser Colosseum shattered and Royal Decree, Ectoplasmer and Precious Cards from Beyond were all sucked into its swirling mass.

"Next, I summon Genex Recycled. Then I use his effect to make his name Genex Ally Crusher." Michael began.

An old, rusted version of Genex Controller appeared. The creature was sitting down, leaning backwards and supporting itself with both of its arms, looking at Diabolos with its wide eyes. Behind it, the ghostly image of Genex Ally Crusher appeared. [ATK: 200]

"Then, I activate Machine Duplication!" Michael announced.

_Back in the stadium office…_

"Genius." Julius breathed.

"Eh?" Everest asked, turning his head slightly in Julius's direction.

"By making Genex Recycled's name Crusher's and then using Machine Duplication, this means he'll get two more Genex Ally Crusher's instead of Genex Recycled." Julius explained.

"He certainly knows his way around that deck." Reynar said. His three companions looked at him to see if there was any other reaction, but instead Reynar merely looked down at the playing field, lost in thought.

_Back in the stadium…_

Next to Genex Recycled, two copies of Genex Ally Crusher appeared. They stood in mirrored poses, each on either side of Genex Recycled and tossing a grenade up into the air. [ATK: 1000]

"Then, I tune my level one Genex Recycled to my two level four Genex Ally Crushers!" Michael announced. "The one who charges endless through the darkness, the light that captives even the strongest foe! Synchro Summon! Charge, Locomotion R-Genex!"

The huge train monster appeared, raising its arms and shining the lights from its chest and at the ends of its palms on Diabolos. The dark dragon struggled against the light for a few moments, but its body relaxed and then it came over to Michael's side of the playing field.

"Do you really think that will stop me? Send any monster you can, mine or yours; they'll all perish by my hand." Demetri said with an almost non-existent smirk on his face.

"Fine then, Diabolos! Locomotion! Attack him directly!" Michael commanded, pointing at his black-haired foe. The two monsters attacked, but Demetri didn't even seem fazed by the immense amount of damage he'd just taken.

**[Michael: 2650 / Demetri: 2700]**

"Are you done?" Demetri asked in a bored voice.

"I set one card face-down. Your move." Michael said.

"Check the top card." Demetri said, extending the arm that he had his duel disk on towards Michael. "You control Diabolos now, so you reap the benefits of his effects."

"Right." Michael said, jogging over to Demetri's side of the field and picking up the top card of his opponents deck. Allure of Darkness. Without a word he put it on the bottom of Demetri's deck and jogged back to his side of the field.

"Draw. During my Standby Phase, since Malice Doll of Demise was tribute by the effect of a continuous spell card, its special summoned to my side of the field. Now, to get rid of that R-Genex monster" Demetri said, smirking as he rose a card up into the air.

"I activate Rare Metalmorph and equip it to Locomotion. He gains 500 extra attack points and if he's targeted by a spell card, I can negate the effect of that card." Michael said. The metallic body of Locomotion became shinier and its attack points rose up to 3000.

"Beautiful, you've played into my hands." Demetri chuckled. He turned around the card he had raised to show that it wasn't in fact a spell card, but a monster. "I'll send that Rare Metalmorph to the graveyard to special summon Trap Eater."

Below the hologram of Rare Metalmorph a set of open jaws appeared. The jaws rose up, consuming the card in one bite before closing to reveal the full form of Trap Eater, a horned purple monster with big pink lips and a strange lower body. [ATK: 1900]

"I'm tuning my level four Trap Eater to my level four Malice Doll of Demise." Demetri said as the two monsters rose into the air. "Sadness, sorrow, anger and revenge feed the flames of my soul! From the blackest void, I call you forth! Synchro Summon! Rot, Blood Mephist!"

The green-skinned form of Blood Mephist appeared. The Synchro monster wore a black cloak, a black top hat and held a staff that ended in a skull. [ATK: 2800]

"Blood Mephist, attack Locomotion." Demetri ordered.

The green-skinned monster chuckled and reared its head back, its neck bulging to an unnatural level. Blood Mephist threw its head forward and vomited a black acid on Locomotion, the machine monster quickly melting away to nothing.

**[Michael: 2350 / Demetri: 2700]**

"I'll set this card face-down. Make your move." Demetri said.

"Draw." Michael said.

"At this moment, Blood Mephist's monster effect activates. During your Standby Phase, he inflicts 300 points of damage to you for each card you control." Demetri announced.

Blood Mephist reared back his head and vomited the black acid onto Michael. Just as the Genex duelist had been getting over his nervous feeling about Demetri, he noticed something. This acid _burned_. It was only slightly, but he noticed it. He looked up, wide-eyed to Demetri and saw the black-haired duelist smirking at him.

**[Michael: 2050 / Demetri: 2700]**

"Don't be scared, don't be scared, don't be scared." Michael repeated over to himself. He put the drawn card into his duel disk and removed five cards form his graveyard. "I use Pot of Avarice to add my three Genex Ally Crushers, my Genex Recycled and my R-Genex Locomotion back to the deck. In exchange, I draw two cards." Michael explained.

"I've told you this before, it won't matter what he draw." Demetri said softly.

"Oh really?" Michael said, his voice cracking nervously during the 'really' and the challenge losing any power it might've had behind it as a result. "I set one card and then I summon Genex Ally Powercell!" Michael said.

A yellow-and-orange robot with a lightning bolt on its chest and two purple power plugs on its arms appeared. The creature had a light blue visor and upon its entry into the battlefield immediately turned to Diabolos. Pointing the two power plugs at Diabolos, electricity shot out towards the dark dragon and energized it, bringing its strength up to 3300. With a content smile, Powercell turned to face Demetri. [ATK: 1700]

"Genex Ally Powercell gives all of my monsters with the same attribute as him an additional 500 attack points. Now I have enough power to get rid of your Blood Mephist and take away a chunk of your life points!" Michael declared.

"Try it." Demetri shrugged.

"Fine! Diabolos, destroy Blood Mephist!" Michael commanded.

The dark dragon roared and exhaled black flames towards the opposing Synchro monster, which vomited acid towards the oncoming flames. There was an explosion and the sound of a shattering hologram, meaning the attack had connected, but was more concerning was the fact Demetri was laughing.

**[Michael: 2050 / Demetri: 2200]**

It was strange laughter, the pitch and tone changing constantly. It was almost like he had never laughed before and was still getting used to it. But whatever the cause of the irregular laughter was, it was creeping him out. The audience found it amusing however and Michael could hear their laughter.

"Dark Ruler, see my plight and bestow upon me a servant of unfathomable strength that will annihilate all of those who stand before us! Come forth and destroy, Berserk Dragon!" Demetri chanted, still hidden inside the smoke from the explosion.

The deafening roar of a dragon was heard and the audience was immediately silenced. With a single flap of its wings, the beast inside of the smoke cloud cleared all of it away. Next to the huge creature was a card called 'A Deal with Dark Ruler', which had let Demetri summon the huge monster which now stood on his field.

The new monster was a pitch-black, skeletal dragon with a small amount of curved back purple hair on its head. The dragon fell forward, landing on its hands and unleashing another deafening roar, one so powerful Michael felt himself get pushed back slightly from it. If this guy really was like Vincent, with Berserk Dragon's incredible attack strength he was in for a literal world of hurt. [ATK: 3500]

_Back in the stadium office…_

"Impressive. He pushed Demetri to the point where he had to call out his true ace." Julius noted.

"But… if Demetri continues on like this, then that means…" Christine said, her voice trailing off.

"Yes, but we can't do anything to stop him." Everest grunted, shaking his head.

_Back in the stadium…_

"This is the card that will bring about your end." Demetri said, locking eyes with Michael. "Berserk Dragon can attack all monsters you control. Accept your defeat. Do not defend. Do not resist. This was unavoidable." Demetri said in an oddly calming voice.

"I end my turn." Michael said quietly, still looking into Demetri's eyes. He walked over to his opponent's field and picked up the top card of his deck and glanced at it briefly. It was some level six monster so he paid it no mind as he returned it to the top of the deck.

"Your battles are at an end. Just remain calm." Demetri said, the dark blue eyes Michael could see through the slight parts Demetri's black hair were oddly hypnotizing. Michael nodded slowly and walked backwards back to his position, never once breaking eye contact.

"I understand…" Michael whispered, his eyes half-open.

"Good, good. Berserk Dragon, destroy Genex Ally Powercell." Demetri ordered, still not breaking eye contact.

Berserk Dragon howled and formed a fireball in its mouth, shooting it forward and easily destroying Powercell. The force of the blast was so powerful that Michael fell backwards, landing on his back. He just lay there staring at the open sky, remembering Demetri's words. He never had a chance against him in the first place, so why bother dragging things out now?

**[Michael: 250 / Demetri: 2200]**

_Back in the stands…_

"What the hell is he doing just lying there?" Tasha grumbled.

"Sometimes you just lose the will to fight back. I guess he just doesn't have the will to go on." Travis shrugged.

"Michael!" Kali shouted, jumping up from her seat and attracting the attention of those around her to her. "Don't defeat lying down! If you're going to lose, then stand up and lose like a man!"

"…I didn't think you had that in you." Tasha chuckled.

_Back in the stadium…_

As Michael lay staring at the sky which was tinted orange by the setting sun he could hear many voices. Almost all of them were criticizing him. Why should he bother defending? He had no cards in his hand. If he did, it would just be one more turn of staring at that horrifying dragon.

But then he zeroed in on one voice. One telling him to stand up and face defeat like a man. It was Kali's voice. The spell of Demetri's words was broken as Michael leapt to his feet, glaring at the black-haired duelist.

"Back on your feet? It won't matter. Berserk Dragon, finish him!" Demetri roared. It was odd hearing that calm voice yell, but what was more odd was that Michael felt a similar pulse of energy to the one he felt when battling Warren.

Berserk Dragon fired another fireball right at Diabolos. Staring at Demetri defiantly, Michael slammed his finger down on one of the buttons on his duel disk, Defense Draw rising up just as the attack connected with Diabolos.

"Held on, did you?" Demetri growled.

"Defense Draw reduces all battle damage from one attack to zero, and then I can draw a card. Demetri, if I go out, it'll be facing you as I am. Not lying on the ground or cowering in fear." Michael said, drawing his card for Defense Draw. He could make this work, depending on his next draw.

"You should've listened to me and not wasted everyone's time by dragging this out." Demetri sighed.

"Can I make my move?" Michael asked.

"Go for it." Demetri said. "During each of my End Phases, Berserk Dragon loses 500 attack points." Demetri explained as Berserk Dragon's attack fell to 3000.

"Draw!" Michael said, turning the drawn card over. "Monster Reborn! Come back, Thermal Genex!"

The blue flaming machine burst out of the ground and took its place on Michael's field. It was his last stand against Demetri's creatures of darkness. [ATK: 2400 - 2600]

"Show me your reversal strategy then, because clearly your monster isn't strong enough to best Berserk Dragon in battle." Demetri said, brushing his hair out of his eyes for the first time.

"Synchro Blast Wave, that's my strategy. While I control a face-up Synchro monster I can destroy one of your cards! Be gone, Berserk Dragon!" Michael shouted.

Thermal Genex began to pulse with energy, seconds later it fired a blast of it straight at Berserk Dragon and destroyed the evil creature.

"Thermal Genex, attack him directly!" Michael ordered. Demetri had already started to walk away when he was declaring the attack, but the flames caught up to him and dropped his life points to zero. Never slowing down or even glancing back, Demetri was out of the arena before the MC could declare him the victor.

**[Michael: 250 / Demetri: 0]**

"That's it ladies and gentlemen! The one who gets to face the King for a shot at the title is none other than Michael Aker!" The MC announced. The crowd broke into applause with Michael merely stood there, drinking it all in.

_Back in the stadium office…_

"Demetri… was beaten?" Christine asked to no one in particular.

"If someone was going to do it, I'm not surprised it was him." Everest shrugged.

"Director, when Demetri attacked with Berserk Dragon… he's one of those Psychic duelists?" Julius asked.

"Yes. I employee several people with that ability." Reynar nodded.

"But isn't that what Rugal does-"

"Our reasons for doing so are entirely different. I will explain everything tomorrow Julius, the final battle will provide a much more fitting example. Now if you'll all excuse me, I have to go to say some closing words." Reynar said. The older man excused himself from the group and started his trek down into the arena.

_Back in the stadium…_

Michael stood in the center of the arena, with the MC in front of him and a dirty blonde person he assumed was Cain 'the King'. Michael stared at him for a few moments, Cain turning and meeting his gaze.

"I had a feeling I'd be seeing you again." Cain murmured.

"Wait… you were on the ship!" Michael exclaimed. Yeah, he could see the resemblance now. If his hair and clothes were a little messier, he would've noticed it sooner, but there was no mistake. He'd seen him before on the ship. Before they could exchange anymore words, the MC spoke up.

"Now everyone, we have some closing words from the sponsor of this tournament: Reynar Sullivan, Director of Sector Security!" The MC announced, passing the microphone off to the older man who moved to stand in the center of the arena.

"Thank you all for coming for the first day of the Fortune Cup. We've seen many thrilling battles here today, and tomorrow the tournament will draw to a close while these two exceptional duelists fight for the title of King! From the bottom of my heart, I thank all of you for coming out here today to support all these fantastic duelists and I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow! Drive safely and have a pleasant evening." Reynar said, passing the microphone off to the MC again.

"That's it everyone! We'll see you all tomorrow for the final match of this year's Fortune Cup!"

_Later, outside the stadium…_

Travis and Michael both collected their Duel Runners and waited for the traffic to die down a bit before leaving. After a decent amount of time had passed, they stepped out into the night air and were greeted by Kali and Tasha.

"Great job, both of you!" Kali congratulated.

"Thank you kindly." Travis said, tipping his hat to the blonde girl.

"Michael, I have a few questions to ask you when we get back to the hotel." Tasha said.

"Come on, it can wait until later. He's probably exhausted from all the victory he's tasted today." Travis chuckled.

"No, this is important. So promise me you'll answer them when we get back, alright?" Tasha asked.

"Yeah, no problem." Michael said. He was tired and really did just want to go to sleep, but his interest was piqued at what exactly Tasha so desperately had to ask him.

_In Rugal's limosine…_

"Well that was a productive day. Even though we lost Warren in round one, it still went better then excepted. Two people even got riled up enough for them to actually go ahead and do it." Rugal chuckled.

"Then tomorrow we get to see Michael bite the dust, unless this guy screws everything up." Jehan grinned.

"That's some really top-notch contempt you have for that kid." A new voice laughed.

"Don't mind him. I'm sure you'll be able to defeat Mr. Aker and help move the plan along. Isn't that right, Cain?" Rugal asked.

* * *

><p>Oh boy, the tournaments almost over. I know some people really don't like tournaments, but I needed this one. If you don't, just hang in there for one more match. It's almost over and then the plot starts flowing again. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, so hopefully you guys enjoyed reading it. I've always wanted to use Berserk Dragon and this was the most fitting chance I would get to use him. That's it from me, so I'll see you all next time.<p> 


	13. Chapter 13: Chaos Infinity

That night, Michael and company had returned to the hotel. At Tasha's request, Michael held off on going to sleep so Tasha could ask him some questions. The ones he knew were coming he answered easily. What crime had he committed, was he really from Satellite, yes he had a marker, he came here on Rugal's boat all for the purpose of finding a friend.

"You don't want to get involved with that guy." Tasha said.

"I know, a lot of people have confronted me about this and told me the same thing." Michael groaned.

"You don't understand. He runs the Arcadia Movement." Tasha said.

"Mind telling me what that is?" Michael asked.

"Sure. The Arcadia Movement is made up almost exclusively of Psychic duelists. From what Kali told me, you already had a run in with one. I'd suspect that Warren and Demetri fall into that category as well. Basically they're duelists who can inflict real damage during a duel." Tasha explained.

"Alright, go on." Michael nodded, becoming more interested in the conversation.

"Most of the Arcadia Movement members are brain-washed into joining. A lot of missing persons have turned up in the Arcadia Movement, but because of their... 'powers' Security can't do anything against them. The new Director has been trying to limit their movements, but it's… it's really difficult from what I've heard." Tasha sighed.

"So you just want me to continue avoiding him at all costs? Done. Besides, once I find Jared I'll probably disappear back to Satellite. I don't even have a place to stay once this tournament is over. If I did stay, I would be living in constant fear that my secret would be exposed… and that's not for me." Michael shuddered.

"Yeah. Just keep away from anyone associated with the Arcadia Movement. Anyway, you got a big day tomorrow. See you in the morning." Tasha said, standing up and leaving the room so Michael could finally get some sleep.

_Tomorrow, at the stadium…_

"Speed World 2, set!" A computerized voice declared.

Michael licked his lips as he stopped his duel runner at the starting line. The Director had previously given a speech thanking everyone for coming and to enjoy the battle that was about to be held. It was almost time to wrap up this tournament.

Looking over at his opponent, Michael saw that Cain didn't look the least bit nervous. He was calm and collected; acting like this duel was no different from any other. Deep down, Michael had to admit that he respected that a little bit.

"Alright! Both duelists are ready; now let's bring this tournament to a close with a Turbo Duel! Who will come out on top? Will Cain Dalton continue to reign, or will Michael Aker dethrone him and take the crown for himself?" The MC asked.

The counter appeared in front of the two duelists and slowly began to count down. 10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… 0.

"Turbo Duel, acceleration!" The MC declared.

Both duelists shot forward, but Cain's duel runner was just better. It had a more powerful engine, so he was easily able to get in front of Michael. Staying close to the inside track, Michael knew he would only have one chance to snatch that first turn.

When they neared the turn, Cain started to turn but drifted farther towards the center of track. This was Michael's chance. He was able to slip right in front of Cain since the dirty blonde duelist had drifted too far away for the inside of the track.

"That's it! The first turn goes to Michael Aker! The MC declared.

**[Michael: 8000, SPC: 0 / Cain: 8000, SPC: 0]**

"Draw!" Michael declared. "I set one card and summon R-Genex Accelerator!"

The accelerator monster appeared, a low hum coming from its form as it flew next to Michael's duel runner. [ATK: 1500]

"Your move." Michael said.

"Draw." Cain said with a small smile on his face. "I set one monster. Back to you."

"Draw." Michael said, his duel runner beeping as both his and Cain's Speed Counters rose to 3. "The monster I drew was Genex Army, so by using Accelerator's effect I can special summon him to the field." Michael explained.

A small white orb appeared inside of R-Genex Accelerator. The mechanical creature began to spin, and once it reached a decent speed the orb shot through the creature and as it exited, transformed into the form of Genex Army. The hulking creature grunted loudly and adjusted the weapon its shoulder. [ATK: 2300]

"Next, I summon R-Genex Overseer and use his effect to special summon the Genex Controller in my hand!" Michael continued.

The blue, floating form the Overseer appeared. [ATK: 200] Next to it, Genex Controller appeared, dropping out of a blue portal Overseer had summoned. [ATK: 1400]

"I'm tuning my level two R-Genex Overseer to my level six Genex Army!" Michael declared. "Our hearts beat as one, opening the path to a new horizon! The warrior who out speeds all! Synchro Summon! Ride on, Genex Ally Axel!"

Michael's ace Synchro monster burst onto the field, skating alongside his duel runner. [ATK: 2600]

"Next, I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level four R-Genex Accelerator!" Michael continued. "The controller of the elements calls forth the power of the blistering winds! Let your gales guide the path to victory! Synchro Summon! Absolute gales, arise, Windmill Genex!"

In a ferocious gust of wind, the bipedal green form of Windmill Genex appeared. The fan on the creature's deck began to spin faster as Michael had one set card on the field, so the Wind monster gained an additional 300 attack points. [ATK: 2000 - 2300]

"But it's not over yet! I discard the Scrap Recycler in my hand to bring back… well, Scrap Recycler! Then its attack is doubled!" Michael continued.

Genex Ally Axel raised both of its hands into the air and an orb of white light formed. Michael discarded Scrap Recycler, which he immediately retrieved from his graveyard and placed it on the field. The orb of light rose higher into the higher and took the form of Scrap Recycler, a creature that looked like a robotic garbage can. [ATK: 900 - 1800]

"When Scrap Recycler is normal or special summoned, I can send one level four or lower Machine-type monster from my deck to the graveyard. I send Genex Worker to the graveyard. Moving on, Speed Spell – Swing of Memories! When I have two or more Speed Counters I can special summon one normal monster from my graveyard, but it's destroyed during the End Phase. Come back, Genex Controller!" Michael continued.

Bursting out onto the field once more was the form of Michael's signature tuner, Genex Controller. The radio-headed monster sat down in mid-air and hovered there as it followed behind Michael's duel runner. [ATK: 1400]

"I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level three Scrap Recycler!" Michael declared. "The controller of the elements calls forth the impenetrable defense of the Earth! Mountains will create an impassable wall which no enemy shall pass! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Geo Genex!"

The brown, hulking form of Geo Genex broke out of the Synchro gates. Roaring and flexing its arms, Geo Genex punched the air proudly. [ATK: 1800]

"Genex Ally Axel attacks your set monster!" Michael declared.

Axel skated backwards and leapt into the air, bringing his leg down on the reversed card. The image of a small purple creature with a siren on its head appeared momentarily before the card exploded.

"You destroyed Stygian Security. Now I can special summon one level one Fiend-type monster from my deck. I summon another Stygian Security in defense mode!" Cain announced.

The tiny dark blue creature that had two black wings, a red flashing siren on its head and a megaphone in one hand appeared in place of the destroyed card. The tiny creature crossed its arms over its face and turned blue. [DEF: 600]

"Windmill Genex attacks it!" Michael continued.

A hurricane formed under Stygian Sector, sending the monster flying up into the air where it shattered into pieces. But as soon as the winds died down, another one appeared from Cain's deck to take its place. [DEF: 600]

"Geo Genex!" Michael shouted.

The brown monster flew towards the imp-like creature and punched it, shattering it into several pieces.

"I summon Chaos Necromancer" Cain said calmly.

A creature dressed in purple garments with a pale face and silver hair appeared. The Fiend-type monster cackled maniacally as its hands glowed with energy. [ATK: 0 - 900]

"Chaos Necromancer gains 300 attack points for every creature in my graveyard." Cain explained.

"I end my turn." Michael sighed. He'd emptied his hand to get out these three monsters and was more than a little disappointed that he hadn't been able to deal any damage to Cain.

"What an impressive turn! Michael attacked the King with an untamed ferocity, but the King defended expertly and didn't lose a single life point in the process!" The MC shouted.

"Draw." Cain said, smirking as he looked at his drawn card. "Now, this is where the fun begins."

_Back in the stands…_

"Yes Cain, show everyone the power I've given you." Rugal chuckled.

_Back in the stadium…_

"I activate Speed Spell – Ritual of Destruction. I can activate this card when I have two or more Speed Counters. From my hand, I send Djinn Presider of Rituals and Djinn Cursenchanter of Rituals to the graveyard to summon this." Cain grinned, holding the card up high. "Sealed god of destruction, gain the power of everlasting darkness and return to this world! Ritual Summon! Arise, Garlandolf, King of Destruction!"

An orb of pure darkness appeared in front of Cain's duel runner. Two purple arms burst out of it, and then with a horrific roar the rest of the darkness disappeared, leaving the form of the King of Destruction. He was tall and had purple skin, with gold jewelry on his arms, chest and legs. The top of Garlandolf's head was a white mask, and the evil king chuckled as it set its eyes on Michael's duel runner. [ATK: 2500]

"Garlandolf's monster effect! When it's summoned, all creatures with less defense than his attack are destroyed." Cain explained.

Waves of darkness spread out from Garlandolf, enveloping Chaos Necromancer, Genex Ally Axel and Windmill Genex. The creatures struggled, but were soon consumed entirely by the blackness and were destroyed.

"Power is gained through destruction, that's why at this moment Garlandolf's second effect activates! For each monster destroyed in this way, he gains 100 extra attack points!" Cain smirked. Garlandolf roared triumphantly as its power rose up to 2800.

"Next, I activate Speed Spell – Ritual of Grace! I remove from play Djinn Presider of Rituals and Djinn Cursenchanter of Rituals to summon this card…" Cain trailed off as he removed the two creatures from his graveyard. "Goddess of salvation, descend onto this battlefield and help me conquer my enemies with your holy might! Ritual Summon! Descend, Divine Grace – Northwemko!"

The sky above the stadium began to shine with a radiant light and slowly the Divine Grace herself descended. Northwemko had blonde hair and wore purple, almost black clothing. Her headdress had a white sheet that fell behind her back and in her hand she held a staff, the same color as her clothing, which appeared to have the face of an angry sun on it. [ATK: 2700]

"Then I summon Memory Crusher!" Cain announced, exhausting the last of his hand.

A demonic dark purple and black creature appeared, shrieking loudly. It had black wings and its head appeared to just be one solid brain with two curved red horns coming out of its cheeks. [ATK: 1000]

_Back in the stadium office…_

"That isn't Cain's deck at all…" Julius murmured. His eyes started to widen as realization dawned on him. "Unless... He couldn't've…"

"What? Tell me!" Reynar demanded, whipping around to face Julius.

"He made good on his word… he has taken all four paths. With this, he has shown us the paths of light, darkness, forbidden power and… betrayal." Julius said quietly.

_Back in the stadium…_

"Now, for some effects. Northwemko, when summoned, can select a number of cards on the field and as long as those cards are face-up on the field she can't be destroyed. I select Garlandolf. Next, the Djinn I used to summon these two. They can be used for a Ritual summon even in the graveyard, which is how I summoned Northwemko. Also, when they are used for a Ritual summon the summoned monsters gain some effects. So now as long as either Garlandolf or Northwemko are on the field, the effects of your Synchro monsters are negated and whenever either of them destroys one of your monsters I can draw a card." Cain smirked.

"What a fantastic comeback! In face of Michael's rampant Synchro summoning, Cain counters with a strategy we have yet to see from him: Ritual summoning!" The MC shouted.

"Northwemko, attack with Divine Judgment!" Cain declared.

"Scrap-Iron Scarecrow will negate your attack and then reset itself on the field!" Michael countered.

Northwemko raised her staff and a pillar of light descended from up high, falling towards Geo Genex. But Scrap-Iron Scarecrow rose up into the air, intercepting and blocking the attack. Once the light dispersed, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow re-set itself.

"Tch. Garlandolf, finish the job! Attack Geo Genex!" Cain ordered.

Garlandolf fired a beam of black energy towards Geo Genex, which enveloped the Synchro monster and destroyed it. Thanks to Presider's effect, Cain was able to draw one card.

**[Michael: 7000, SPC: 4 / Cain: 8000, SPC: 4]**

"Memory Crusher, direct attack!" Cain commanded.

The purple fiend flew forward and struck Michael's duel runner with one of its claws, knocking the Genex duelist off-balance for a few seconds.

**[Michael: 6000, SPC: 4 / Cain: 8000, SPC: 4]**

_So this guy is like the other two as well, huh…_ Michael thought grimly to himself. With the strength of Cain's current monsters, he was in form some trouble down the road.

"Memory Crusher's monster effect activates! When he successfully attacks your life points directly, 100 points of damage are inflicted to you for every card you have in your extra deck! I know you play with a full extra deck, and since you summoned three from there already that means you take 1200 points of damage." Cain smirked.

Memory Crusher let out an ear-piercing screech. It was so loud that the audience slammed their hands over their ears to block it out. Michael didn't have that luxury as he had to keep driving and was starting to fear that his ears would start bleeding if this creature stuck around too long.

**[Michael: 4800, SPC: 4 / Cain: 8000, SPC: 4]**

"My turn is over!" Cain said loudly.

"Draw…" Michael panted. Well, at least he drew a monster. "I set one monster… your move."

"Ha! You can't do anything in face of this overwhelming power, can you?" Cain laughed. "Northwemko, pass your judgment on that cowardly creature!" Cain shouted, pointing towards Michael's set monster.

Another pillar of light descended, but yet again Scrap-Iron Scarecrow protected the creature from attack.

"Garlandolf!" Cain called.

The evil king cackled and fired another blast of dark energy at the set card, the tormented form of Genex Searcher appearing briefly before shattering. Again Cain drew, but in the place of Genex Searcher a yellow armored creature with a scope for an eye and a grenade in its hand appeared, it was Genex Ally Crusher. [ATK: 1000]

"Attacking would be suicide… and I still have use for Memory Crusher." Cain grumbled. "I set one card. It is your move."

"Draw!" Michael shouted, drawing from his deck as his Speed Counters rose up to 7. "I activate Speed Spell – Shift Down! By removing six Speed Counters, I can draw 2 cards." Michael explained.

The Genex duelist fell far behind Cain, but the loss was worth it as the two cards in Michael's hand could definitely help him turn things around.

"I summon Genex Ally Duradark!" Michael declared.

A black and dark blue humanoid robot with a red visor covering the entirety of its face appeared next to Genex Ally Crusher. [ATK: 1800]

"Crusher's effect activates! When a creature with the same attribute as him is summoned, I can destroy one card you control! I pick Garlandolf!" Michael announced.

A well-lobbed grenade was the end of the King of Destruction, striking the Fiend-type monster square in the chest and wiping him out in the explosion.

"But now, I need to get rid of that Divine Grace. I can actually manage that, believe it or not. I discard Genex Ally Chemistrer to activate its effect. By discarding it, I can select one Genex monster I control and change its attribute. I change Duradark to a creature of light!" Michael declared rather ironically. The card parts of Duradark's armor changed into a glorious yellow while the blue remained the same.

"Duradark's monster effect! At the cost of being able to declare an attack this turn, I can destroy one card with the same attribute as him. Good-bye Northwemko." Michael smirked.

Duradark fired a blast of light energy from its hands, striking the Divine Grace and destroying her.

"To end my turn, I'll switch Genex Ally Crusher into defense position." Michael finished.

Crusher crouched down and crossed its arms over its chest, boasting a much more respectable defense stat than its attack stat. [DEF: 2000]

"This really is a duel worthy of the championship! It's a back-and-forth of monster destruction! But who will come out on top?" The MC asked.

"Draw." Cain said. "I activate Speed Spell – Allure of Darkness. By removing 3 Speed Counters, I can draw two cards on the condition I remove one Dark monster in my hand from the game. If I can't, I send my hand to the graveyard." Cain explained. He drew his two cards and was silent for a moment.

"Well?" Michael asked.

"I remove Demise, King of Armageddon from the game. Next, I summon Chaos-End Master!" Cain grinned.

An angel with spike grey hair appeared next to Cain's duel runner. The Warrior-type monster was dressed in white armor that was trimmed in gold and had two shining white wings. [ATK: 1500]

"Then, I flip summon Damage Eater!" Cain continued.

A tiny yellow winged spirit with red teeth and huge white eyes appeared, not uttering a sound which Michael found surprising since its mouth was hanging open. [ATK: 100]

"I tune my level three Chaos-End Master to my level two Damage Eater and my level three Memory Crusher!" Cain declared, chuckling to himself as the three monsters rose up into the air. "During the endless conflict between the light and the dark, you dance along the border. I call you forth; now lay my enemies to waste! Synchro Summon! The envoy of light and darkness, Chaos Goddess!"

A woman dressed in black-and-white clothing with white hair wielding a white staff appeared on Cain's field. The woman turned to look at Michael and gave a condescending chuckle, twirling her staff with her fingers. [ATK: 2500]

"Chaos Goddess's monster effect. By discarding one Light monster, I can revive one level five or higher Dark monster. I discard Ruin, Queen of Oblivion to bring back Garlandolf!" Cain grinned.

Chaos Goddess raised her staff and a pillar of darkness burst up from the ground, a familiar howl dispersing the shadows as Garlandolf emerged, the crowd going wild with his arrival. [ATK: 2500]

"Chaos Goddess, destroy Duradark!" Cain ordered.

Chaos Goddess pointed her staff at Duradark and launched twin beams of both white and black light which intertwined as they flew towards their target. But yet again, Scrap-Iron Scarecrow rose up to block the attack.

"No matter. Garlandolf, rid the field of that pest!" Cain commanded, pointing back towards Duradark.

Garlandolf roared with laughed and fired another blast of dark energy, this one finding its mark with no trouble and shattering the poor Genex monster.

**[Michael: 4100, SPC: 2 / Cain: 8000, SPC: 5]**

"I'll set one card face-down, this ends the Kings turn." Cain chuckled.

"Draw." Michael said quietly, picking up the top card of his deck. His heart fell when he saw it wasn't a Dark monster he could use to activate Genex Ally Crusher's effect. "…I set one card face-down. Your move, King." Michael said spitefully.

"Draw. Now for the finishing touches of the King's strategy. I activate the first card I ever got from a booster pack, Gift of the Mystical Elf!" Cain declared. "For each monster on the field, I gain 300 life points. So with two monsters on my field, I gain 600 life points."

**[Michael: 4100, SPC: 4 / Cain: 8600, SPC: 7]**

"Why would you use a card like that?" Michael asked.

"Sentimental reasons, mostly. Also it helps me achieve my goal when I duel: To end with more than I started with. The King enters the battle and comes out better for it, i.e having more than 8000 life points." Cain explained. "But enough chatter, Chaos Goddess attacks Genex Ally Crusher!"

Michael let the attack go through, since he could only block one attack anyway and Crusher would've been destroyed either way.

"Garlandolf, attack the Satellite scum directly!" Cain shouted.

Michael froze and he heard the crowd gasp. He was shocked. He knew Cain knew that he was from Satellite since he had been on the boat with him when he arrived, but the fact he said it here meant Michael grossly misjudged his character. Garlandolf was able to land his attack, striking Michael's duel runner and almost causing him to spin out with Michael had been too shocked to activate Scrap-Iron Scarecrow to prevent the attack.

**[Michael: 1600, SPC: 4 / Cain: 8600, SPC: 7]**

With his spirits low and the crowd starting to turn against him, Michael looked up at the two monsters on Cain's side of the field. Garlandolf, the King of Destruction and Chaos Goddess. Each was powerful in their own right and together they were proving to be quite the obstacle to overcome. With no cards in his hand and no monsters on his field, he felt a sense of dread set over him as he followed behind Cain's duel runner.

* * *

><p>Oh boy a cliffhanger. I apologize. But to be fair, this chapter came out to around 8000 words when I wrote it. So after getting some feedback I decided to split it into two parts. The climactic conclusion to the Fortune Cup is coming up next, so look forward that. I've been updated every four days for the past while, so I'll continue that pattern for as long as I can. Thanks for reading and I'll see you all next time.<p> 


	14. Chapter 14: Fuh Rin Ka Zan

"That crime Mr. Aker was almost arrested for? That's right; it was because he came here illegally from Satellite!" Cain announced to the crowd.

The crowd roared in protest and starting throwing food and drink towards the Genex duelist, who kept his head and tried to focus on not crashing.

_Back in the stadium office…_

"What the hell…" Everest murmured. "If they are on the same side, why would he do that to him?"

"Internal conflict, perhaps?" Julius suggested, even though he still wasn't bought on the idea that Michael worked for Rugal.

"I must go." Reynar declared, turning and exiting while leaving his comrades confused.

_Back in the stadium…_

"What's the matter, Satellite? I ended my turn, but you haven't gone. Are you too ashamed to make a move?" Cain laughed.

Michael just kept his head down and took deep breaths while the crowd continued to boo and curse him out. He'd lost a lot of life points because the shock of Cain's words prevented him from activate Scrap-Iron Scarecrow in time. He was contemplating just leaving, driving up the ramp, into the garage out of the stadium. But where would he go from there? His hand was hovering over his deck to surrender when a new voice came over the microphone.

"Stop this nonsense immediately!"

Michael raised his head, recognizing the voice as the Director's.

"Mr. Aker's crime was not coming here illegally. His papers were all in order. Rather, his crime stemmed from a misconception he had about the law. Do you really think we would really allow someone who came here from Satellite illegally to simply join our tournament? Then let him get off scot for winning a game? No. We wouldn't. This ungrounded trash talk has gotten you all riled up for nothing. Please cease your throwing objects and let these two fine duelists finish their duel." Reynar said.

The audience quieted down, put down by Reynar's words. Cain gritted his teeth and glared daggers up towards the MC's booth where Reynar was passing the microphone back to the MC.

"It's still your move!" Cain barked.

"I… draw." Michael said, dumbfounded that the Director would lie to protect him like that after sending several people after him to find out his intentions.

_Back in the stadium office…_

"I can't believe you actually did that." Julius chuckled, shaking his head as Reynar rejoined the group.

"That crowd would have torn him apart and ruined the track with their trash. His life would've been ruined had I let things run their course. I've decided to trust the judgment of you three that he is not affiliated with Rugal." Reynar announced.

Christine and Julius exchanged smiles while Everest just watched the match. It was hard to see, but there was even a small smile on the Laval duelist's face.

_Back in the stadium…_

"I activate my set Hope for Escape, by paying 1000 life points I can draw one card every 2000 points of difference in our life points. Thanks to your greed, this means I can draw 4 cards!" Michael declared. Cain snarled as he drew four more cards from his deck, bringing his hand up to a respectable five cards.

**[Michael: 600, SPC: 5 / Cain: 8600, SPC: 8]**

"You may have replenished your hand, but you've crossed Speed World 2's safety line! If I draw a Speed Spell, you're finished!" Cain shouted. Safety line was a term used when a duelists life points were 800 or below in a Turbo duel, since it meant that if the other player had a Speed Spell in their hand they could end the duel right there as long as they had four or more Speed Counters.

"We'll just have to see if you can pull one then! But until then, I summon Genex Undine. Using Undine's effect, I send one Undine from my deck to the graveyard to add Genex Controller to my hand." Michael explained.

The blue robot known as Genex Undine appeared on Michael's field, giving off a low wail as it rose up. [ATK: 1200]

"Next, I activate Speed Spell – Summon Speeder! When I have two or more Speed Counters, I can special summon a level four or lower monster. It can't attack this turn, however. But that's not an issue. I summon Genex Controller!" Michael announced.

Yet again, his signature Tuner took the field, looking at the audience with wonder in its eyes. [ATK; 1400]

"I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level three Genex Undine!" Michael grinned, regaining a little confidence as the two monster rose up into the air. "The controller of the elements calls forth the bounty of the ocean! The power of the ocean to both give and take life is embodied in this new entity! Synchro Summon! Rise, Hydro Genex!"

Hydro Genex burst out onto the field and a few of the audience members applauded having been convinced that the Director's speech was the truth. With higher spirits, Michael looked at the advanced form of Genex Undine that was Genex Hydro and smiled. [ATK: 2300]

"I set one card face-down. Your move." Michael finished.

"Draw!" Cain shouted, turning the card over and grimacing. No Speed Spell apparently. "You summoned a monster weaker than mine? You really are desperate. Garlandolf, attack!"

"Scrap-Iron Scarecrow!" Michael countered.

"Guard against this! Chaos Goddess, attack Hydro Genex!" Cain commanded.

"I don't need to guard. I activate Deal of Phantom! Until the End Phase, for each card in my graveyard, Hydro Genex gains 100 attack points. I have 16, so that brings its total up to 3900!" Michael shouted.

"Impossible!" Cain shouted as Hydro Genex countered Chaos Goddess's beams of light and darkness, sending them back towards the opposing Synchro monster and destroying it.

"Since you attacked a more powerful monster, your life points will also take a hit." Michael reminded him.

"Shut up." Cain growled, the calm demeanor the King had at the beginning of the match was gone completely now.

**[Michael: 600, SPC: 6 / Cain: 7200, SPC: 9]**

"Hydro Genex's effect activates. When it destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the graveyard, I can life points equal to its attack." Michael explained, breathing a sigh of relief as his life points were brought above the safety line.

**[Michael: 3100, SPC: 6 / Cain: 7200, SPC: 9]**

"I set one card face-down and end my turn." Cain grumbled.

"Draw!" Michael declared, picking up the top card of his deck. "I summon Genex Spare!"

The copy of Genex Controller that hand a flower for a hand appeared, marveling at the beauty of the flower while being completely unaware of the other monsters around it. [ATK: 800]

"I activate the effect of Genex Spare, while I control another Genex monster I can make its name Genex Controller until the End Phase. Next, I activate Speed Spell – Double Summon. When I have two or more Speed Counters, I get one additional normal summon or set this turn. Then, since I have a face-up Genex Controller, I can summon Genex Furnace without a tribute." Michael explained.

The red sentient furnace that was Genex Furnace appeared on the field, its door slamming open and shut as it flew next to the Duel Runner. [ATK: 2000]

"I tune my level three Genex Controller to my level five Genex Furnace!" Michael declared. "The controller of the elements calls forth the power of searing flames! Synchro Summon! The flame burns through the darkness nights and harshest storms, Thermal Genex!"

The last of the four elemental Genex Synchros appeared on the field with its blue flames burning brightly. It floated next to Hydro Genex, giving off a low mechanical growl. [ATK: 2400 - 2600]

"Thermal Genex gains 200 extra attack points for every Fire monster in my graveyard. So now he's stronger than your Garlandolf." Michael smirked.

"Just attack already!" Cain shouted furiously.

"Thermal Genex, attack Garlandolf!" Michael ordered.

Blue flames engulfed Garlandolf, the King of Destruction struggling against the flames before finally succumbing to their power.

**[Michael: 3100, SPC: 7 / Cain: 7100, SPC: 10]**

"Now, Thermal Genex's monster effect! When it destroys one of your monsters by battle, I inflict damage to you equal to the number of Genex monsters in my graveyard times 200! I currently have 17, so you're about to take 3400 damage!" Michael declared with pride in his voice.

Above Thermal Genex the images of the seventeen Genex monsters resting in Michael's graveyard appeared. One by one, they each turned into a flame, until the sky above Thermal Genex appeared to be on fire. With a roar, Thermal Genex pointing towards Cain's Duel Runner and the flames rained down towards him.

"That won't work! By removing the Damage Eater in my graveyard from the game, when I would take effect damage I gain that amount instead!" Cain smirked. "I told you! At the end of a battle, the King will always come out ahead!"

**[Michael: 3100, SPC: 7 / Cain: 10500, SPC: 10]**

"Better get to work on chipping that away. Hydro Genex, attack him directly!" Michael commanded.

"I activate Call of the Haunted! I revive Chaos Goddess!" Cain laughed.

The feminine form of Chaos Goddess returned to the field, giving off another condescending chuckle as it looked down on the weaker Hydro Genex. [ATK: 2500]

"Since the conditions of the field have changed, I cancel my attack. I'll set one card face-down and end my turn." Michael sighed.

"Draw. I told you, the King will always come out of a battle in better shape than he went in." Cain chuckled. Both of their Duel Runners beeped and they each gained a Speed Counter. "I discard one Light monster to bring back Garlandolf." Cain said, sliding a card from his hand into the graveyard.

Another pillar of darkness appeared on the field, the majesty of it lost by this point. But for the third time, Garlandolf emerged from the pillar cackling and flexing its fingers. [ATK: 2500]

"…If you were Enrise, I could finish this duel right now. But I'll settle for this. I remove the three Stygian Security and the Ruin, Queen of Oblivion in my graveyard to special summon Sky Scourge Norleras!" Cain shouted.

The sky rumbled and bolts of lightning struck the field at random as the black, bandaged form of Sky Scourge Norleras descended onto the field, flapping its black wings as a deathly silence overtook the arena in wake of his arrival. [ATK: 2400]

"Speed World 2's effect. I remove 10 Speed Counters to destroy one card on your field. I'll destroy Thermal Genex!" Cain shouted. Cain fell back, allowing Michael to take the lead on the track.

Lightning dropped down from above, striking Thermal Genex and destroying the Synchro monster instantly.

"Chaos Goddess, attack Hydro Genex!" Cain commanded. Again, Michael let the attack through since he was going to take damage and a direct attack either way.

Chaos Goddess fired her twin beams of light and dark energy, striking Hydro Genex and destroying the last of Michael's monsters.

**[Michael: 2900, SPC: 8 / Cain: 10500, SPC: 1]**

"Garlandolf, attack him directly!" Cain declared. Garlandolf launched another blast of dark energy towards Michael, but yet again the evil king found its attack intercepted by Scrap-Iron Scarecrow.

"Norleras!" Cain continued. A pulse of energy was released from the Sky Scourge creature and Michael knew that this next attack was going to be painful.

Norleras raised a single finger and a single bolt of black lightning dropped down from above and struck the Genex duelist's Duel Runner. The pain was excruciating, but thankfully he was able to keep his Duel Runner under control and not crash or spin out.

**[Michael: 500, SPC: 8 / Cain: 10500, SPC: 1]**

_Back in the stands…_

"I'll be off now. I can tell where this is going." Rugal said, rising up from his seat,

"I'll stick around; I want to see this kid lose." Jehan said with a malicious grin on his face.

_Back in the stadium…_

"A difference of 10000 in our life points, you're below the safety line and have an empty field… a perfect picture. A peasant trying to overthrow the King." Cain said, chuckling softly. "Turn end.

"Draw…" Michael panted as his Speed Counters rose to 9. "I activate… Pot of Avarice… returning my five Synchro monsters to the extra deck to draw two cards…" Michael panted. This was it. This was the destiny draw. He composed himself and drew his last card silently. "Cain… you fought well. But this match is over."

"What the hell are you going on about?" Cain growled. "This is where you're deciding to act tough? You can't stand up to the might of my creatures. My monsters all have over 2000 attack points. If you can truly bring about reversal here, then show me!" Cain shouted.

"I activate the Speed Spell – Synchro Panic!" Michael declared.

"Synchro Panic?" Cain asked.

"When I have seven or more Speed Counters, I can special summon as many Synchro monsters as possible from my extra deck that were Synchro Summoned during this duel. However, their attack becomes zero, their effect is negated and they're removed during the End Phase. Once again, come forth! Windmill Genex! Thermal Genex! Hydro Genex! Geo Genex! Genex Ally Axel!" Michael called.

_Back in the stands…_

"Hey! Boss! Get back over here; you might want to see this!" Jehan shouted over the murmuring of the crowd.

"Hmm?" Rugal had been about to enter the hallway and make his way to the exit, but at Jehan's suggestion he turned around and continued to watch the duel.

_Back in the stadium…_

Five orbs that were varying colors flew out of Michael's Duel Runner and into the air. One was blue, one was brown, one was red, one was green and one was black. Two floated down on his left, two on his right, and one directly behind him. On his left, the green orb turned into Windmill Genex, the brown one into Geo Genex. On his right, the blue turned into Hydro Genex and the red one into Thermal Genex. Lastly, the black orb directly behind Axel's Duel Runner transformed into Genex Ally Axel. [ATK: 0]

"Five monsters with zero attack points? This is the strategy you'll use to beat me?" Cain sneered.

"The fact that they have no attack points doesn't mean a thing right now. What matters is that they can attack." Michael said with a tiny smirk on his face.

"What?" Cain growled. But Michael wasn't paying attention to him anymore.

"I active my face-down trap: Gaia's Crossing!" Michael announced. Those in the audience who knew the effect of his card started to talk with the person next to them.

"Gaia's Crossing is a trap card, that when activated, will increase the attack of all of Michael's monsters by 500 points for every different attribute controlled by Michael's monsters, not including their own attribute! Since all five of his monsters have different attributes, all of them gain 2000 attack points!" The MC explained.

"For six Speed Counters, this card will bring about your defeat. Limiter Removal!" Michael shouted. The loss of Speed Counters put Michael a little behind Cain, and as he was falling back Michael noticed the shocked look on Cain's face.

"But…" Cain said, his voice barely a whisper. In one turn, Michael had gone from a field with no monsters to field of 5 creatures that each had 4000 attack points.

"This is the end! I enter my Battle Phase!" Michael announced loudly. He was pouring his all into this last attack. Then, to his surprise, he felt five pulses of energy. It was like adrenaline had started to pump through his veins. He felt alive now. The cause was a mystery, but there would be time for that later. Right now, he had a duel to fight.

"Windmill Genex, attack Garlandolf!" Michael commanded.

Windmill Genex glowed with a powerful green aura and summoned a powerful cyclone below the evil king. Michael could see the Cain's Duel Runner was struggling to keep going forward under the power of the winds, but they dispersed after Garlandolf was destroyed and any real damage could be done.

**[Michael: 500, SPC: 1 / Cain: 9000, SPC: 2]**

"Geo Genex, attack Chaos Goddess!" Michael continued.

Geo Genex, who was glowing with a brown aura, flew forward and slammed one of its massive fists into Chaos Goddess. The opposing Synchro monster howled in pain and shattered, the resulting shockwave knocking Cain off-balance slightly.

**[Michael: 500, SPC: 1 / Cain: 7500, SPC: 2]**

"Thermal Genex, attack Norleras!" Michael continued.

Glowing with a radiant red aura, which looked a little odd considering the flames Thermal Genex produced were blue, the Fire attribute Synchro monster launched its attack. Cain had managed to regain his balance just as the flames consumed Norleras and scorched the back tire of his Duel Runner.

**[Michael: 500, SPC: 1 / Cain: 5900, SPC: 2]**

"Hydro!"

Hydro Genex, glowing with similar blue aura, flew forward and struck the back of Cain's Duel Runner, causing the King to start swerving uncontrollably. But Michael only had a single attack left to declare and he could put this over-confident jerk in his place.

**[Michael: 500, SPC: 1 / Cain: 1900, SPC: 2]**

"End this! Axel Finish!"

Axel skated forward, leaping into the air and bringing its leg down on the back of Cain's Duel Runner. To Michael's surprise, the back of Cain's Duel Runner broke off and the former King and his Duel Runner spilled down onto the ground, Michael coming to a stop right behind him.

**[Michael: 500, SPC: 1 / Cain: 0, SPC: 2]**

"That's it! It's all over! Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new King! Please give it up for Michael Aker!" The MC announced.

The crowd broke out into explosive cheer as Michael helped Cain up, the Chaos duelist limping away cursing him. He was starting to piece things together. Whenever he felt those pulses of energy, it meant that real damage was about to be inflicted. Apparently, strong emotions are what bring on those energy pulses. He wanted to think more about it, but a squad of cheerleaders rushed him up into the center of the stadium.

_Back in the stands…_

"That was fantastic! Bravo!" Rugal cheered loudly, clapping his hands as he returned to sit with Jehan. "I had a hunch about that boy; I have just the way to recruit him. He will sit at my left, as the defeater of the King. With him and Alyssa, I do believe I can finish this little game." Rugal smiled.

"But… I thought I was…" Jehan said quietly.

"Oh come now. Mura sat at my right before I discovered you. Now you sit at my right. Soon he will sit at my right. He's simply a better candidate." Rugal explained.

"No. He. Isn't." Jehan growled, standing up. The headphones wearer's arm shot out and grabbed his wrist, preventing from leaving.

"Let him go, Mura." Rugal said with a wave of his hand. The headphones wearer, Mura, nodded released his grip on the red-haired boy's arm. Jehan storm off, muttering to himself.

"Are you sure that was the right decision?" Mura asked quietly.

"I'm not actually sure if I really want to take on the boy as a protégé. But with how furious he is over the possibility, this will only speed up the process. Everything will be complete soon. Come along, it's time to move." Rugal said, standing up and walking off with Mura in tow.

_Back in the stadium…_

"Congratulations, Mr. Aker. We from Sector Security would like to grant you the title of King. You've triumphed over many foes, but now your battles have finished. Several privileges will be granted to you which will be discussed in private later. Most importantly, on behalf of all of us we ask that you uphold the ideals of dueling. Having fun and preserving over and any obstacle that comes your way, going down fighting even when you know defeat is inevitable." Reynar said.

Just like that, Michael was now the King. Sure, it held no real power but he was still giddy from having beaten Cain.

"Everyone! Thank you very much for attending this year's Fortune Cup! We saw the fall of Cain Dalton and the rise of Michael Aker! Please, get home safety and we'll see you all next year!" Reynar said, dismissing the crowd and officially ending the Fortune Cup.

"Excuse me." Michael said, reaching over and tapping Reynar on the shoulder.

"Yes?" The Director asked.

"Why did you help me?" Michael asked.

"Come by my office in a few hours, say around… four. We have many things to discuss, but I have paperwork to finish up, some of which includes a place for you to stay." Reynar chuckled, knowing that Michael was currently staying a hotel and probably had very little, if any, money. With that, the director walked away.

"Uhmm… excuse me." A small voice behind him said.

"Yes?" Michael said, turning to face a cheerleader who looked a little nervous to be addressing him.

"Someone wants to see you. They're waiting in the garage." The cheerleader said, running off seconds later.

Michael shrugged his shoulders and wheeled his Duel Runner back into the garage. The person who had asked to see him was leaning against one of the many support pillars. Michael's heart skipped a beat when he recognized who it was. The hair was longer, he looked a little older, but he remembered the face.

"Long time no see." The person laughed, pushing off of the pillar.

The whole reason for coming here had finally paid off. The entire point of entering the Fortune Cup had led up to this encounter. Standing before him was Jared Valcrist.

* * *

><p>Gaia's Crossing<p>

Normal Trap

Until the End Phase of the turn this card is activated, all face-up monsters you control gain 500 attack points for every different attribute possessed by monsters on your side of the field that is a different attribute from their own.

* * *

><p>Well, that's it. The ending of the Fortune Cup and Jared's debut. I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, so I hope you all enjoyed reading it. I'm considering doing something with Zexal in the near future since I've been brimming with ideas for that. I have some stuff to finish up for tomorrow, so I have no other comments. See you all next time!<p> 


	15. Chapter 15: Berserking

"Man, I can't believe you actually came out all this way just for me. You really are a great friend." Jared said, walking over and putting his hand on the Genex duelist's shoulder.

"Well… it's not like my life back there was going anywhere anyway. I was getting involved with all the wrong people." Michael sighed.

"That's rough… but hey, you're here now and the freaking King! That's fantastic!" Jared said, attempting to cheer his friend up.

"Yeah, I s'pose. But now I can finally ask you this… what is this favor you're cashing in?" Michael asked.

_Outside the stadium…_

"I… I can't believe he managed that." Travis said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I can't believe the Director covered for him like that." Tasha muttered.

"All we have to do now is hope that Jared guy saw that match and can seek Michael out." Kali sighed.

"What the heck is that guy doing?" Tasha asked, pointing towards a person not too far away from them.

Travis and Kali both followed her finger and they saw a red-haired boy who Kali immediately recognized as Jehan stomping around the parking lot. He had his teeth bared and his fists clenched and looked incredibly angry.

"Hey! Is everything alright?" Travis called out while walking towards the red-head.

"Who the hell are you?" Jehan growled, whipping around to face Travis. His eyes widened when he saw that Kali was standing behind him, remembering her from the boat. A smile crossed his lips as he looked back to Travis. "Are you a friend of the new Kings?" Jehan asked.

"I'd say I'm more of an acquaintance." Travis replied.

"Travis, watch out! I remember this guy! His name is Jehan and he's part of the Arcadia Movement!" Kali shouted.

"Oh my," Travis said, chuckling softly and adjusting his hat. "You know, I've always wanted to play against one of you Arcadia fellows."

"Are you crazy?" Tasha shrieked. "Do you not remember me telling you about how dangerous these guys are?"

"Well you're in luck Mr. Acquaintance, I was hoping to duel one of the new Kings friends." Jehan laughed.

"Everything works out splendidly then!" Travis grinned, activating his duel disk. Across from him, Jehan did the same.

"Duel!"

**[Travis: 8000 / Jehan: 8000]**

"If you're not in the hospital by the end of this, we're through." Tasha huffed, folding her arms over her chest.

"Oh you know you love me. I'll go first." Travis said, shrugging off Tasha's comment. "I summon Gemini Summoner!"

Gemini Summoner took the field, the monster's outfit barely a striking resemblance to Chthonian Emperor Dragon in terms of color. [ATK: 1500]

"Then, I set two card face-down. You're up." Travis finished.

"Draw. I activate Worm Call." Jehan said.

The sky above the two duelists began to distort. Within seconds a huge white-grey gelatinous mass was floating above them.

"When you control a monster and I don't, I can special summon a Reptile-type Worm monster from my hand in face-down defense position. So I'll set this guy face-down, then set one more monster. I'll set one card face-down and end my turn there." Jehan said, a total of three face-down cards appearing on his field, two of them being monsters.

"During your End Phase, I activate the effect of Gemini Summoner. I can 500 life points to normal summon or set a Gemini monster from my hand. I'll summon Dark Valkyria." Travis announced.

**[Travis: 7500 / Jehan: 8000]**

Gemini Summoner put its hands together and uttered a chant; a magical seal appeared beside him. When the chant was completely, Dark Valkyria rose up from the magical circle with a confident smile on her face. [ATK: 1800]

"Now it's my turn." Travis said, picking up the top card of his deck. "I tribute Dark Valkyria to summon Chthonian Emperor Dragon!"

Dark Valkyria disappeared, being replaced by the much larger form of the Emperor Dragon. When they were standing side by side, it was much easier to see between the similar appearance of Gemini Summoner and Chthonian Emperor Dragon. [ATK: 2400]

"Then, I'll use Double Summon to Gemini summon Chthonian Emperor Dragon!" Travis declared.

A red seal appeared below the mighty dragon who roared as power coursed through its veins, gaining its effect.

"Chthonian Emperor Dragon attacks the card you set first!" Travis declared.

A sickly turquoise-and-brown reptile with sunken in yellow eyes appeared as Chthonian Dragon exhaled flames over the cards. Crossing its skinny arms over its chest, the creature actually withstood the flames with no damage aside the singe marks now present on its arms. [DEF: 2400]

"Worm Noble's effect activates. If this card is flipped face-up by one of your attacks, you take damage equal to half the attack of the monster that attacked it." Jehan snickered.

The Reptile-type creature raised both of its arms and tendrils of darkness shot towards Travis, striking the Gemini duelist square in the chest. Travis groaned and put his hand over the area the tendrils had hit, feeling real pain from the effect.

**[Travis: 6300 / Jehan: 8000]**

"This is everything I thought I'd be." Travis chuckled.

"I'm glad I haven't disappointed you, but I haven't even gotten started." Jehan smirked.

"Well, we'll just have to see where this duel goes then. Chthonian Emperor Dragon's effect allows it attack twice every Battle Phase. So next my dragon is going to roast your set creature with Imperial Inferno!" Travis shouted.

The image of a blob of thick black goo appeared momentarily before being burned to ashes by the dragon's breath.

"When Worm Jetelikpse is destroyed after being flipped, I can special summon it in defense position." Jehan explained.

The hideous blob reappeared, but this time Travis and those watching the duel could make out the faint body of Yellow creature inside the blob. [DEF: 0]

"Gemini Summoner, attack his Worm Jet-whatever." Travis continued.

"I activate Offering to the Snake Deity. I can target face-up Reptile-type monster, like Jetelikpse, and then target two cards you control and destroy all three. I'll destroy the two cards in your back row." Jehan announced.

A yellow light surrounded Jetelikpse as the Reptile shrieked as its body was consumed by the light. As Jetelikpse exited the field, the two cards in Travis's back row shattered. With a frown on his face, Travis sent Gemini Trap Hole and Birthright to the graveyard.

"I end my turn." Travis finished.

"I draw. I'll activate the spell card Viper's Rebirth. When all the cards in my graveyard are Reptiles, I can special summon one of them. It's destroyed during the End Phase however." Jehan explained. "I'll bring back Jetelikpse, but I'll immediately tribute him to summon Worm Queen."

The form of Jetelikpse appeared for no more than a few seconds, as it was immediately replaced by a larger silver creature. It had four arms and was almost like an insectoid centaur. It had 6 legs and huge abdomen. Below its torso was something resembling a large face with two black slits that held huge yellow eyes. [ATK: 2700]

"Worm Queen is level seven, but can tribute one with one tribute by using a Worm monster. Next, it's time for the Queen's effect. I tribute Worm Noble to summon a Worm monster with a level that is equal to or less than the tribute monsters level. Come forth, Worm Prince!" Jehan shouted.

Worm Queen grasped Worm Noble on one of its many hands, the turquoise creature offering no resistance as the Worm Queen crushed it. In its place appeared the huge, orange humanoid form of Worm Prince. [ATK: 2200]

"Worm Queen attacks your dragon!" Jehan commanded.

The Queen let out a piercing shriek which forced to Travis to cover his ears. His dragon wasn't as lucky as he was and unable to escape the sound and was promptly destroyed by it.

**[Travis: 6000 / Jehan: 8000]**

"Worm Prince attacks Gemini Summer!" Jehan continued.

The huge orange creature balled its hand into a fist and launched it towards Gemini Summoner. The Spellcaster flew backwards, but remained in one piece surprisingly.

**[Travis: 5300 / Jehan: 8000]**

"I'll end my turn there then." Jehan finished.

"During your End Phase, I'll pay 500 life points to use Gemini Summoner's effect… I'll tribute it to summon Grasschopper!" Travis declared.

**[Travis: 4800 / Jehan: 8000]**

Gemini Summoner grunted in pain as it was replaced by a larger creature. It was a praying mantis, but its arms were giant blades which it used to slash through the air seemingly at random. [ATK: 2350]

"You're spending life points you don't have on creature that won't help you." Jehan laughed.

"Oh, I know what I'm doing." Travis smirked as he drew from his deck. "I Gemini summon Grasschopper, then I'll equip him with United We Stand!"

A red seal appeared below the Insect monster. It shrieked in pleasure as it felt new power coursing through its form. Then the effect of United We Stand kicked in, granting Grasschopper 800 extra attack points for every monster on Travis's field. It may have been the only one, but it was about to put those 800 extra points to very good use. [ATK: 2350 - 3150]

"Grasschopper's monster effect is that it can attack every monster you control once. So say good-bye to both of your monsters!" Travis declared.

Grasschopper howled and advanced on Jehan's monster. Worm Prince moved to protect the Queen, but was cut down by the large insect creature in a single swing on its bladed arms.

**[Travis: 4800 / Jehan: 7050]**

The Queen didn't fare much better. Grasschopper brought its arms down in an X-shape and sliced the Queen of Worms into fourths, destroying her on the spot.

**[Travis: 4800 / Jehan: 6600]**

"You're up." Travis finished.

"Heh, you're no slouch." Jehan said as he began his own turn. "But I'm just better than you. Go, Dark Hole!"

A swirling vortex of blackness formed in the center of the field, pulling Grasschopper into its murky depths. With the equipped monster gone, United We Stand also shattered leaving the field completely bare aside from Jehan's Worm Call.

"I'll set one monster face-down and end my turn there." Jehan finished,

"Considering you didn't take the chance to attack me directly that means your set monster must be fairly weak." Travis said, nodding slowly to himself as he drew.

"Weak or not, you don't have a monster on your field." Jehan sneered.

"True, I don't have one in my hand either. Well, not yet. I activate Cup of Ace!" Travis announced. In the center of the dueling field a large golden coin appeared.

"Gambling again?" Jehan asked.

"I don't have any other choice. So let's see how this plays out, shall we?" Travis smiled.

Jehan gritted his teeth as the coin flew up into the air. It flipped several times and then slammed onto the ground with a loud thud. Jehan cheered and Travis's face fell as the result became clear: Tails.

"You get to draw two cards then." Travis mumbled, clutching at the empty air in front of him since he had no cards in his hand. "I can't do anything else."

"Draw. I tribute my set Worm Ugly to summon Worm Warlord!" Jehan said, laughing as he slammed the monster card onto his duel disk.

A huge dark red creature that had no head to speak of but instead had a single eye and a hug mouth in its torso appeared. On the left and right sides of the torso were the creature's legs, and above and below the torso were its arms giving the Worm monster a very displeasing appearance. The creature's fists had spiked knuckles and it let out a low laugh as its single eye focused on Travis. [ATK: 2350]

"Worm Ugly's monster effect! When it's used as a tribute for a Worm monster, it gets summoned to your side of the field in face-up attack position." Jehan smirked.

A strange, circular light blue blob with eyes and a small sideways mouth appeared on Travis's field. The creature had what appeared to be green mucus dripping off of its body. [ATK: 100]

"Now, for the finisher. I activate the continuous spell card Solidary! As long as all the cards in my graveyard are the same type, all monsters of that type on my field gain 800 extra attack points!" Jehan laughed.

A dark red aura surrounded Worm Warlord and the creature grinned as its power rose up to a very respectable sum of 3150.

"Worm Warlord, destroy Worm Ugly!" Jehan commanded.

Worm Warlord lumbered forward on its two legs and grabbed Worm ugly between its two large hands, crushing the smaller creature with ease.

**[Travis: 1750 / Jehan: 6600]**

"Oh but it doesn't end there," Jehan snickered. "When Worm Warlord destroys a monster by battle, it can attack once more!"

"Travis!" Tasha shouted.

"Go, Worm Warlord! Finish him!" Jehan laughed.

Worm Warlord ran towards Travis, the mouth on its torso opened in a hideous grin. With its lower fist, it uppercut Travis into the air and with its upper fist it slammed him back down into the ground, the spikes on his knuckles cutting into the Gemini duelists flesh.

**[Travis: 0 / Jehan: 6600]**

"TRAVIS!" Tasha screamed, running over and collapsing next to the battered duelist.

"Well, looks like you get two get to stay together. Unless you hate him enough not to bring him to a hospital after this." Jehan laughed.

"You bastard!" Tasha snarled.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Anyway, you. Blonde chick." Jehan said, turning his gaze in Kali's direction.

"W-What?" Kali stuttered.

"You're up next, activate your duel disk." Jehan smirked.

"I don't want to." Kali replied, shaking slightly.

"Listen, I'm bein' nice here. Notice how Worm Warlord hasn't disappeared yet? I'm giving you a chance to defend yourself. " Jehan said.

"You're twisted!" Tasha shouted.

"So what'll it be Blondie?" Jehan smirked, Worm Warlord letting out a low laugh behind him.

"I'll duel." Kali said quietly.

"Excellent." Jehan grinned. He returned the cards on his field to the deck, the auto shuffler doing the rest. Kali activated her duel disk and the two faced off.

**[Jehan: 8000 / Kali: 8000]**

"I'll go first." Kali said, trying to muster any confidence she could. "Summon Wattgiraffe in attack mode!"

A giraffe that had lightbulbs for ears appeared in front of her. The giraffe discharged electricity as it narrowed its eyes and pawed at the ground. [ATK: 1200]

"Then, I'll set one card face-down and activate the field spell Wattcastle!" Kali continued.

A huge, vibrant blue, yellow and red castle that had electricity flowing around it rose up behind the Watt duelist. Then the reversed card appeared behind Wattgiraffe. All the while, Jehan was just smiling.

"Will that be all?" Jehan asked.

"Yeah." Kali finished.

"Alright, first of all I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your set card!" Jehan announced. The form of Magic Cylinder briefly appeared before the harsh winds destroyed it.

"Now, this is the fun part. I activate Future Fusion. By sending twenty Worm monsters from my deck to the graveyard, in two turns I get Worm Zero." Jehan grinned.

"Twenty?" Kali asked in disbelief, as that would constitute most of her opponent's deck.

"Yes, but that doesn't matter. Because I'm going to win before that! I activate Viper's Rebirth to bring back Worm Victory from my graveyard!" Jehan grinned, laughing maniacally as his monster appeared.

The six-armed, blood-red form of Worm Victory slowly rose up behind the Worm duelist. Making a V using all six of its arms, Worm Victory shrieked as its power rose up to unbelievable levels. [ATK: 0 - 9500]

"9500 attack points…?" Kali breathed, falling to her knees.

"Worm Victory gains 500 attack points for every Reptile-type Worm monster in my graveyard. Since I sent 20 and then brought him back, basic math leaves us with a final total of 9500." Jehan smirked. "Worm Victory, end this!"

A pulse of energy shot out from Worm Victory while the huge reptile brought back its fist. Howling and throwing its fist forward, Worm Victory smashed through Wattgiraffe. But the Worm monster's fist kept going and slammed into Kali, sending the Watt duelist flying backwards.

**[Jehan: 8000 / Kali: 0]**

It soon became clear that the Watt duelist had been knocked unconscious from the blow, leaving Tasha as the only one that was capable of doing anything.

"You're terrible." Tasha growled.

"Yes, but you're really in no position to anything about it. After all, if you lose too then who will watch over your boyfriend?" Jehan asked, laughing to himself.

Tasha looked down at the bleeding Travis and then over to the unconscious Kali. As much as she hated to admit it, this guy was strong. The damage he took against Travis was minimal and he didn't take any damage against Kali. She had confidence in her abilities, but if she lost too then…

"What do you want?" Tasha asked.

"Hehehe. Just wait there for a moment." Jehan grinned as he took a cellphone out of his pocket, quickly dialing a number as the hologram of Worm Victory faded out of sight behind him. "Hey boss. Yeah, that was me. Anyway, remember how you wanted to recruit that… yeah, him. Listen, I'm still in the parking lot and I got three people here and a plan we can use." Jehan said. He listened to Rugal's reply and then hung up his own phone.

Locking eyes with Tasha, Jehan simply waited. Eventually, several plain-clothed Arcadia Movement duelists arrived. They exchanged a few words with Jehan before a van came around. Jehan walked away with an evil smirk on his face as they hauled the two unconscious duelists and Tasha into the back. As much as he hated the possibility of Michael taking his position he figured he could stay in his boss's good books and then if Michael happened to 'disappear' later on, well he'd be more than willing to take his spot back.

_Back in the stadium garage…_

"You… want me to take down the Director of Sector Security?" Michael asked in disbelief.

"Yes I know, it's an unbelievable thing to ask but… he's an evil man." Jared said.

"Oh my god, I've been hearing that everywhere lately. Don't trust these guys, their evil don't trust that guy, he runs an evil organization. I'm getting sick of it." Michael groaned.

"No, listen to me. When I was in the Facility, I saw a lot of Security Officers come in one day. Apparently they'd all been sent there for no valid reason on the orders of the new Director. I swear to you, he's corrupt." Jared said.

"He helped me out against Cain though. The crowd would've torn me to ribbons if they found out I was from Satellite." Michael protested.

"Yes! Because he wants you to be his pawn!" Jared exclaimed, throwing up his hands.

"His pawn?" Michael asked.

"Duh! Think about it, you're from Satellite. He can blackmail you into doing whatever he wants you to with that information! Even if you hadn't defeated Cain, he could've given that sucker some speech on how he wanted to see a real duel between two equals and not one duelist who has confidence and one who is emotionally compromised. He only had things gain from protecting you!" Jared said, sighing in exasperation.

"He did send a few duelists after me, even one during the middle of the tournament…" Michael muttered. "He said we had a lot to discuss during my meeting with him too…"

"That's where he'll tell you what exactly he wants you to do. Preach a message to the public for him, promote something for him or trash talk something for him, it could be anything." Jared said.

"I'll talk to him later. Let's go outside, it's getting stuffy in here." Michael said. The Genex duelist kept his head down as he and Jared stepped into the outside. Thankfully, the parking lot was pretty much empty. He'd been expecting a swarm of press, but thankfully there was no such thing. He figured they were all getting Cain's final comments on the duel.

"You know, Reynar Sullivan only got the position of Director because the previous Director passed down the position to him? Don't you think that's a little suspicious? Not only that, but once he gets in he replaces the majority of the Sector Security with his own guys?" Jared asked.

"Alright, I'll talk to him about it when I see him." Michael said.

"Do more than that. Tell him you know what he's up. Make him realize you're a force to be reckoned with." Jared said, attempting to pump up the Genex duelist.

Before Michael could reply, another duelist approached them. Michael immediately recognized the duelist as Warren, the muscular duelist not paying any mind to Jared and instead locking his eyes on Michael.

"I just wanted to say it was a good match. I don't take losing well, but I realized how unsporting I was yesterday. You dueled like… a champion." Warren said, extended his hand towards the brown-haired duelist.

"Uh… thank you. I really thought you had me there a few times." Michael replied, shaking the Phantom Beast duelist's hand. He didn't expect Warren to do something like this, but he was glad they could end on good terms. He immediately became wary though, remembering what Tasha had said about the Arcadia Movement.

"Alright, I'll be off now. Adios." Warren said. He released the Genex duelists hand and began to walk away.

"Hey, Warren? Have by chance seen that girl I was with on the boat anywhere?" Michael called after him. There was no one else around, and he was frankly a little concerned his friends hadn't been there to congratulate him.

"Huh? I saw Security Officers talking to them and then they walked away with them." Warren replied, never turning around.

"Shit." Michael cursed.

"He's got you right where he wants you now." Jared muttered.

"He can't do this!" Michael protested.

"Who's going to stop him?" Jared shrugged.

"I think I'll go see him a little earlier than expected." Michael growled, retreating back into the garage to grab his Duel Runner.

As Warren was walking away, a smile crossed his lips. He'd set out the bait and now it was time for Michael to do the rest.

* * *

><p>I lost interest in this story for a little bit, so I took a break. I actually had this chapter done before the hiatus, but never got around to publishing it so the quality is probably sub-par. Either way, I took a break because if I forced myself to write while I wasn't into it, it probably would've turned me off of this story completely. But I'm feeling a bit more into it now, and even if it takes a while I plan on seeing this story through to the end.<p> 


	16. Chapter 16: Rising Air Current

(QUICK NOTE: I used an anime name for a card as opposed to the name it has in the games, just because the anime name sounds so much better than the name it has in the games. Searching the name I used will still bring it up on the Yugioh wiki, so that shouldn't be a problem if you want to see the cards full text.)

Michael stopped his Duel Runner outside of the Sector Security main office and hopped off his bike, Jared stopping his own Duel Runner a little bit behind him. If the Director was really going to try and blackmail him by taking his friends hostage, he had another thing coming. He wasn't entirely sure if he could stop him, but he could at least make what he had done public, even if it meant a trip to the Facility. He was probably going to end up there anyway. The media was bound to eventually do a little more digging and found out there was no official record of him ever coming to the city. They'd want to find out where exactly he came from, and it wouldn't be that hard to find out with his record clearing stating he'd been given a criminal mark.

"Are you ready for this?" Jared asked.

"Yeah… I can finally repay that debt I owe you." Michael replied, Jared smiling and patting him on the shoulder in response.

The duo ascended the steps, entering the building and finding the lobby mostly empty aside from the secretary who had signed him up for the tournament on the day he arrived in the city. She looked up at him and then back down at her computer.

"You're early." She said.

"I didn't have anywhere else to be." Michael shrugged.

"Well, you're a bit too early I'm afraid. You'll have to wait." The secretary sighed. Michael looked over at Jared, the black-haired duelist shaking his head in disapproval. But sadly, there was nothing to be done.

"Mr. Aker?"

Michael turned to see a tall well-dressed women with curly, golden hair approach him. "Yeah, that's me."

"So you're here to see the Director, right? I'm afraid he is actually a little busy at the moment. But if you'd like, we could have a duel to pass the time." The woman said.

"We really should go see him now." Jared urged.

"But… you can't. He still has some paperwork to finish up. I'm his assistant and he's barely had time to talk to me since the tournament ended." The woman said flatly.

"Sure, I'd be up for a duel." Michael said, nodding his head and dismissing Jared's comment.

"What? But- Tch, I guess it can't be helped." Jared grumbled. Michael gave his friend a confused look but regardless, he followed the woman into the elevator with a clearly annoyed Jared behind him.

"Calm down, Jared." Michael sighed as the elevator began its ascent. Then, he added in a whisper: "We can't look too suspicious."

"Oh! You're Jared? You wouldn't happen to be Jared Valcrist, would you?" The surprised woman asked.

"What of it? Who are you, anyway?" Jared asked with a hint of hostility.

"Hey, no need to get angry…" The blonde woman huffed. "My name is Christine. I asked because you're kind of a hot topic around here ever since your buddy said he joined the tournament trying to find you."

"Why am I hot topic exactly?" Jared asked.

"Well, you just showed up in the system one day. Poof! You were just there. No one had heard of you. We were going to send someone to speak with you about it when we found out you were in the Facility, but then you disappeared from there too… some people thought you were a ghost in the machine." Christine explained.

"But… how didn't I have a record? I was told I was released. I was escorted out and everything…" Jared said quietly. The black-haired boy's head turned to the floor and he stared at the ground in confusion.

"We'll definitely have to talk. Oh, we can get it all done when your friend goes to speak to the Director so you won't have to repeat yourself." Christine smiled.

"…Alright." Jared's head perked up slightly and the trio stepped out into a bare hallway that had many doors lining each side.

"Follow me." Christine said. She led the two boys into one of the rooms lining the hallway. It was a medium-sized room, file cabinets lining the walls and a desk filled with papers and clutter opposite the door. The blonde-haired woman walked to the desk, brushing some things off of it onto the ground and shuffling through the rest of it until she found her deck. She smiled and took a duel disk out of the bottom drawer of her desk, sliding it onto her arm and activating it.

"I'll just borrow this." Jared said. He slid behind Christine and picked up the woman's office chair, moving it to the side of the room for a better view.

"Alright, let's do this." Michael smiled, activating his own duel disk.

"You should know that I've been able to hold my own against the previous Kings." Christine smirked.

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000 / Christine: 8000]**

"I'll go first! Draw!" Christine announced. "I summon Cloudian – Altus!"

A huge yellow cloud creature with a bulging stomach appeared. The cloud creature let out a low laugh, slowing patting its stomach. Next to it, a smaller white cloud descended down to float beside it. [ATK: 1300]

"When Altus is summoned, he gets a Fog Counter for every Cloudian on the field. Since he's in the only one, he only gets one. But that'll change soon enough. Next, I activate the continuous spell card Cloudian Squall. During each of my Standby Phases, every face-up monster gets a Fog Counter placed on it." Christine explained.

"What do Fog Counters do?" Michael asked.

"They can do anything; it just depends on who uses them. I'll set one card face-down and end my turn." Christine finished.

"Draw," Michael started. "I summon Genex Neutron!"

The mechanical monster appeared on the field, pounding one of its fists against its hand. [ATK: 1800]

"Genex Neutron attacks Cloudian – Altus!" Michael declared.

Genex Neutron held his hands a little bit apart from each other. Between them, an orb of glowing white energy formed. The mechanical creature slowly pulled its hands further and further apart, the orb growing as he did so. After a few moments the monster shoved its hands forward, sending the ball of energy flying forward and into Altus, the cloud creature disappearing when the attack connected.

**[Michael: 8000 / Christine: 7500]**

"I don't see why you played Altus in attack position. It only had 1300 attack points." Michael commented.

"They have a special ability." Jared piped up from the sidelines.

"What is it?" Michael asked.

"Cloudian's cannot be destroyed by battle. However, if they're switched to defense position they're destroyed." Christine explained. To prove her point, Altus reformed right in front of her, the cloud creature laughing and patting its stomach.

"What a nuisance. I'll set two cards face-down and then end my turn, and during the End Phase Genex Neutron lets me add one Machine-type Tuner monster from my deck to my hand." Michael explained as he added Genex Controller to his hand.

"My turn then. Cloudian Squall activates, placing one counter on Altus and one on Neutron." Christine announced. Another white cloud floated down beside Altus, and another floated next to Genex Neutorn, the machine monster eyeing it suspiciously. After this, Christine simply paused and re-arranged the cards in her hand.

"Everything alright?" Jared asked.

"Oh? Oh yes, I just have to do this in the proper order if I want to make the most out of this turn." Christine repelied. "I summon Cloudian – Turbulence!"

A dark green cloud that resembled a tornado in its shape appeared, two small white clouds falling down from above and floating next to it. [ATK: 800]

"Now I activate Turbulence's effect! By removing a Fog Counter from it, I can special summon Cloudian – Smoke Ball from my deck!" Christine grinned.

Turbulence began to roar, a vortex forming and sucking one of the Fog Counters into its head. The vortex continued and then faded, a small yellow-white creature floating out of it and descending onto the field. [ATK: 200]

"Now, Altus's effect! By removing two Fog Counters from it and one from your Genex Neutron, he can discard one random card in your hand!" Christine continued.

Atlus took a deep breath, sucking in the two Fog Counters floating by it and the one floating by Genex Neutron in the process. The cloud creature held its breath, its stomach expanding until it finally let out a tremendous gust, blowing the Genex Ally Crusher in Michael's hand into the graveyard.

"Dang, I wanted to hit a spell or a trap with that effect." Christine sighed.

"I don't recall Altus getting any benefit based on the card it discards… does it?" Jared asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No, it's just that hitting a spell card would've put me in a better position for what's about to happen next," The golden-haired woman began. "I activate Last Machine Acid Virus!"

"Oh no…" Michael groaned.

"By tributing one Water monster – like my Smoke Ball, I can destroy all Machine-type monsters on your field and in your hand, and any more Machines that you draw for three turns!" Christine laughed triumphantly.

Smoke Ball flew up into the air and out of sight, causing a devastating acidic rain to start pouring down. Genex Neutron kneeled over, groaned, and then exploded. Frowning, Michael sent the Genex Controller and Genex Solar in his hand to the graveyard as well. He revealed the last card in his hand to his opponent: Instant Fusion.

"But I'm not done there. By removing a Cloudian monster from my graveyard, I can special summon this from my hand!" Christine continued.

A dragon with white eyes made of purple clouds descended from above, roaring proudly as it flapped its wings. [ATK: 1000]

"Now, Cloudian – Storm Dragon's monster effect! Once per turn, I can place one Fog Counter on one monster on the field. I'll place it on Turbulence, and then I'll remove both of the counters on Turbulence to special summon two more Cloudian – Smoke Balls from my deck!" Christine smirked.

Storm Dragon roared and another small white cloud floated down next to Turbulence. The vortex appeared again, sucking in both of the Fog Counters and producing two Smoke Balls as a result. [ATK: 200]

"Wow, a full field in just one turn. Impressive." Jared chuckled.

"Now, all my monsters attack you directly!" Christine ordered.

A combination of five different wind-based attacks hit Michael, the Genex duelist appearing to be contemplating something as they did. But in the end he simply shook his head and accepted the attacks.

**[Michael: 4500 / Christine: 7500]**

"Draw." Michael began. He revealed the card he drew as per the rules of Last Machine Acid Virus, showing Christine the R-Genex Overseer he just drew.

"Isn't that a Machine-type?" Jared asked.

"Nope, not all Genex monsters are machines. Overseer is actually a Spellcaster." Michael smiled.

"How very convenient." Christine grumbled.

"Quite. Now, I summon R-Genex Overseer. Then I'll activate Instant Fusion, paying 1000 life points to summon Musician King from my extra deck!" Michael declared.

**[Michael: 3500 / Christine: 7500]**

The familiar floating vehicle the Overseer travelled in appeared. With no targets to summon, no blue portal appeared to call further reinforcements. [ATK: 200] Instead, shirtless man with spiky blond hair wearing a red headband and playing a red-and-white electric guitar appeared. [ATK: 1750]

"I tune my level five Musician King to my level two R-Genex Overseer!" Michael announced as the two monsters floated up into the air. "Quaking earth, searing flames and blinding light come together to form a new entity! The power forged through unity! Synchro Summon, Genex Ally Triforce!"

The white synchro monster with the three-pronged cannon and blue visor leapt out of the Synchro gates and onto the field, raising its cannon and firing a few shoots off haphazardly. [ATK: 2500]

"Now, there's a reason I used Musician King specifically. Since he was summoned using a Light monster, once per turn Triforce can special summon one Light monster from my graveyard in face-down defense position. I'll use it to bring back Genex Solar." Michael smirked.

Triforce shot an orb of white light at the ground, the orb expanding and flattening out into a rectangle which soon transformed into a reversed card.

"Now, Genex Ally Triforce attacks Cloudian – Smoke Ball!" Michael shouted, pointing to one of the two small creatures.

Triforce raised its cannon, firing three shoots at the floating monster which stood absolutely no chance against the Machine-type monsters superior firepower.

**[Michael: 3500 / Christine: 5200]**

"Your move." Michael finished.

"Draw. Now, thanks to Cloudian Squall the five face-up monsters on the field each get one Fog Counter." Christine reminded him as five small clouds floated down from above. "Next, I'll use Turbulence's effect! I remove one Fog Counter from itself to summon Cloudian – Smoke Ball from my graveyard!"

Repeating the same process as before, another smiling Smoke Ball floated down into position on the field. [ATK: 200]

"In attack position again? Smoke Ball doesn't get destroyed if it's in defense mode, so I don't follow your logic." Jared said.

"It doesn't matter what position it's in. Because now I tribute both of my Smoke Balls to summon Cloudian – Nimbusman!" Christine laughed.

A huge humanoid creature composed of white clouds descended onto the field, exhaling loudly as its feet touched the ground. Two small white clouds floated down next to it, attaching themselves to its body and making it grow. [ATK: 1000 - 3500]

"Nimbusman is a level five monster, but I can tribute it using any number of Water monsters. Then, it gains one Fog Counter for every monster tributed to summon it. Finally, it gains 500 attack points for every Fog Counter on the field." Christine explained.

"With Cloudian Squall, that thing is going to get really troublesome real fast." Michael noted.

"I'm not done. I activate Storm Dragon's effect; placing one counter on Turbulence which I'll then remove to revive a Smoke Ball in my graveyard." Christine continued.

Yet again, another Smoke Ball appeared on the field. This one floated around the room smiling happily and became blue, finally being played in defense position. [DEF: 600]

"She's filling up her field so that she'll accumulate more counters during her turn." Jared muttered.

"Bingo! Now, Nimbusman! Attack Genex Ally Triforce!" Christine declared, pointing towards the targeted monster.

"I activate Scrap Iron Scarecrow to negate the attack!" Michael countered.

As Nimbusman's huge hand reached towards Triforce, the scarecrow blocked its path and formed a barrier around the Synchro monster. Nimbusman came into contact with barrier, apparently being hurt slightly by coming into contact with it and recoiled slightly.

"You rely on that card too much. During my Main Phase 2, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon and target the card I know is Scrap Iron Scarecrow!" Christine shouted. In a gust of ferocious wind, the trap was destroyed, leaving Michael with only one more set card. "Then, to end off my turn I'll activate another Cloudian Squall."

"Another one? That's… a lot of counters you'll get next turn." Michael mumbled. He drew his card and turned it over. Genex Ally Duradark. After revealing it to Christine, the effect of her trap kicked in and he sent the Machine-type monster to the graveyard. With nothing else to do, he flipped Genex Solar into attack position.

Solar floated next to Triforce, the two monsters staring down the five cloud-based enemies ahead of them. [ATK: 2500]

"First, I'll use Triforce's effect to summon Genex Neutron in face-down defense position. Next, Genex Solar! Triforce! Attack Turbulence!" Michael ordered.

After Triforce's barrage, Turbulence disappeared, only to re-form seconds later and be blow apart by Genex Solar's attack. But still the cloud monster regenerated.

**[Michael: 3500 / Christine: 1800]**

"To keep your field full will indeed give you more Fog Counters, but it means your monsters with lower attack points have to sit in attack position or be destroyed." Michael smirked.

"That won't matter next turn. Are you finished?" Christine asked.

"Yep." Michael sighed.

"Draw. Now, the effect of Cloudian Squall activates, placing two Fog Counters on every face-up monster." Christine started. Fourteen small puffs descended, attaching themselves to the selected monster. Nimbusman grew considerably from this, but Michael had a feeling that wasn't all his opponent had planned.

"Then, Storm Dragon's effect! I place one counter on Nimbusman. This brings the total amount of Fog Counters on the field up to 20, so that means Nimbusman has 11000 attack points!" Christine grinned.

"Whoa." Jared gasped, staring at the now giant Nimbusman.

"Now, deliver the final blow! Nimbusman attacks Genex Ally Triforce!" Christine declared.

"I activate the quick-play spell Half Shut! One monster on the field can't be destroyed by battle this turn, but in exchange its attack points are halved until the End Phase! I'm targeting your Nimbusman!" Michael countered.

Nimbusman reduced in size considerably, but the attack was still devastating and left Michael hanging on by a thread.

**[Michael: 500 / Christine: 1800]**

"Genex Solar's effect! When a Genex monster is sent form my side of the field to the graveyard, Genex Solar inflicts 500 points of damage to my opponent!" Michael shouted.

The yellow-and-blue machine crossed its arms over its chest, throwing them outwards a minute later and firing a blast of yellow energy at the golden-haired Cloudian duelist.

**[Michael: 500 / Christine: 1300]**

"Tch… I can't risk leaving that set monster on the field. Altus, get rid of it!" Christine commanded.

Altus let loose a powerful gust of wind, blowing the reversed card away and destroying Genex Neutron. Unfortunately, this triggered Genex Solar's effect again and Christine took even more damage.

**[Michael: 500 / Christine: 800]**

"That Genex Solar is a problem… so I have no choice but to do this. Main Phase 2, I switch Cloudian – Turbulence into defense position!" Christine declared.

"But… that'll destroy it." Michael muttered.

"It's a smarter idea to destroy it then leave a monster weak enough to cost her the game on her field." Jared pointed out, Michael nodding in agreement.

"Then, I tribute Cloudian – Storm Dragon and Cloudian – Altus to summon Cloudian – Eye of the Typhoon!" Christine continued.

A massive creature composed of dark blue clouds with one huge eye formed, a strange silence sweeping over the field as it appeared. [ATK: 3000]

"With only nine counters left on the field, Nimbusman's attack drops to 5500. But there's nothing to be done about that, so it's your move." Christine finished.

As Michael reached towards his deck, Jared stopped him.

"If you draw a monster you can actually use, you can't play defensively against Eye of the Typhoon. When it attacks, the battle position of all non-Cloudian monsters is changed. So if you leave them in attack position, Nimbusman will finish them off and if you switch them to defense mode, Eye of the Typhoon will change that." Jared explained.

"…Draw!" Michael said at last. It was the final turn of Last Machine Acid Virus, so he turned the drawn card towards Christine and the Cloudian duelist gasped. Michael turned it around and his eyes widened. He'd drawn Forbidden Chalice.

"Nice save." Jared chuckled.

"Heh… I activate Forbidden Chalice and target Cloudian Nimbusman! It gains 400 attack points, but its effect is negated until the End Phase, so it loses the attack points it gains from any Fog Counters." Michael smirked.

"No way…" Christine said sadly.

"Triforce, finish off Nimbusman!" Michael commanded.

Triforce fired off its volley of three shots, Nimbusman roaring in pain as its body was torn apart. It reformed however, but behind it the Cloudian duelist still took the damage.

**[Michael: 500 / Christine: 0]**

"So close…" Christine sighed, de-activating her duel disk.

"You played really well. That Last Machine Acid Virus is always a pain to play around." Michael said, extending a hand towards Christine.

"Haha… I really thought that card would get you. But you toughed it out in the end. I guess you really do deserve your title." Christine smiled, shaking Michael's outstretched hand.

"A frie- …Well, I guess we weren't really friends, but a guy I used to hang around with named Clark used that card too." Michael said, briefly remembering the bald Water duelist who was now sitting in the Facility along with several other people he used to hang around with.

"Interesting." Christine said, if only to be polite. She glanced at her wrist watch and nodded to herself. "Well, now would probably be a good time to go see him. It's a still a little early, but what the heck."

"Why couldn't you have had that attitude earlier?" Jared grumbled.

"That was waaay too early. Consider this your prize for winning." Christine replied. She put her duel disk on her desk and exited the room, motioning for the duo to follow. Michael gave Jared a confused look as his friend exited the room, the black-haired duelist seeming too eager to go see the Director. He shrugged these thoughts off and followed the two, remembering what Warren had told him about his friends being taken in by Security, anger starting to pulse inside him.

_Outside of the building…_

Rugal sat in one of the Arcadia Movements limousines, the headphones wearing duelist Mura sitting next to him and Cain across from him. The trio was silent as Rugal stared intently at a card, his eyes memorized by the artwork. Finally, the silver-haired man raised his head and shook his head slowly.

"This plan will fail. If left as is, at the end of this we will actually be in a worse position." Rugal said, pocketing the card.

"Future Vision doesn't lie. Are we going to cancel this mission?" Cain asked.

"You're correct about Future Vision not lying, but that's the future if we don't intervene. If we can pull this off… all obstacles will have been removed." Rugal said, chuckling softly to himself.

"So we're moving out?" Cain asked. "Will I get a chance to duel Michael again?"

"Not now," Rugal said impatiently. "You DO remember what building this is, right? You and Mura will draw all of their attention to yourselves while I fix the mess that's about to happen."

Mura and Cain both nodded. The trio left the vehicle and approached the unguarded entrance. Cain entered first, activating his duel disk and approaching the secretary. The secretary dialed a new number and started frantically shouting into the receiver. Cain reached the desk and reached over the counter, yanking the phone cord out of the back of the machine. The secretary looked up defiantly and removed a deck from her desk.

The duel was over quickly, Cain being the victor by a landslide. The dirty blond stood by the elevator doors while Mura stood by the main entrance. Rugal took the stairs, leisurely ascending the steps knowing that with how large the building was it was more likely that people were going to be using the elevator as opposed to tiring themselves out by running down so many flights of stairs. It was unlikely he'd encounter any resistance. The leader of the Arcadia Movement even started to whistle a joyful tune as he walked up the stairs. Soon, the ever-present thorn in his side would be removed.

_Back on the second highest floor…_

Christine had led the two boys into the stairwell and up a single flight of stairs, the trio swearing that they could hear someone whistling. Christine dismissed it as someone who was just enjoying their day. They reached the final landing and pushed the heavy door open, coming out into a barren hallway that ended in a single wooden door. Above the door was a plate that simply read 'Director's Office'. Christine led the two boys down the hall and knocked on the door.

When a voice told them to come in, Michael clenched a fist. He was finally going to fulfill the promise he made to Jared. In a few moments, he'd be facing the Director of Sector Security.

* * *

><p>This chapter took a while because for the longest time I couldn't think of a good Cloudian duel. Also it's getting harder to write Genex duels without repeating myself. There's only so many plays you can make with the same Archetype. Oh well. I'm really excited to keep working on this story. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you all next time.<p> 


	17. Chapter 17: Grand Convergence

Christine opened the door and motioned for the two boys to enter. As they did, the Director shoved what was in front of him to the side of his desk and stood up, a smile on his face. Jared stood at Michael's shoulder, and Christine remained by the door.

"You're early." Reynar noted, checking his watch. "My phone has been ringing non-stop, I haven't had a moments rest since the tournament ended. I'll just listen to whatever messages everyone left later." Reynar sighed. "But you don't care about that, now let's get down to business… say, who are you?" Reynar asked, apparently just now noticing Jared.

"That's Jared." Christine answered.

"Oh! So you're him, how interesting. We'll have to talk later, as we have a quite a bit to get through as is. Now, first off, I think I should explain to you what exactly your duties as King will be-" Reynar started.

"I know you're trying to do." Michael spoke up.

"…Excuse me?"

"You're going to try and turn me into your puppet. Everyone in this city has been so suspicious of me from day one. We'll settle this right here." Michael declared, activating his duel disk. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Jared smiling.

"What are you doing?" Christine shouted.

"Puppet? Slow down. What exactly are you talking about?" Reynar asked, raising his hands in front of him.

"I know what you did. You took my friends just in case the threat of going back to the Satellite wasn't bad enough. But I know something about you. You didn't earn your position, you had it passed down to you. You're trying to blackmail me, I'd bet that you got yourself into your position by blackmailing the previous Director. So, let's have a duel. If I win, you let my friends go and you step down. If you win, you can do whatever you want and I'll support the decision fully." Michael said.

"Blackmail?" Christine asked, giving Reynar a confused look.

"You think I abducted your friends?" Reynar asked.

"Stop playing around and duel!" Jared shouted.

"What are they talking about?" Christine persisted.

"I don't know myself." Reynar admitted.

Michael was starting to become a little disarmed at this point. He lowered his arm and de-activated his duel disk, Jared giving him a crazy look. "You really don't know anything about this? I was told Security took my friends." Michael said quietly.

"They did! You heard that big guy! You can stop him right now!" Jared barked, pointing towards the Director.

"Why DO you want him 'stopped' so badly? Has he even done anything directly to you? I don't think he has, considering some people here questioned your existence. So why do you want me to duel him so badly?" Michael challenged, turning on his friend.

"What kind of friend are you? Are you going back on your promise?" Jared countered.

"What kind of friend am I? I came all the way here looking for you! I didn't even know for sure you were in the city! I participated in a tournament just so maybe, _maybe_, you could track me down! I have gone above and beyond the call of duty, and then what do you decide to ask me to do? Take down Sector Security? I don't even know why I agreed to that anymore!" Michael exploded.

Jared stumbled backwards, a confused look on his face. That look was soon replaced by a fierce glare, and he moved towards Michael but the Director stood between them.

"Both of you. Calm down." He ordered. "I have an inkling of what might be the problem here. Mr. Aker, Christine, please restrain Mr. Valcrist."

Before Jared could properly react, Christine had grabbed his left arm. He swung his free arm, only to have it caught by Michael. He thrashed and struggled, but the two were apparently stronger than they appeared and the black-haired duelist settled on giving his friend a pleading look. Michael looked away, focusing on Reynar as the Director opened a drawer and took out a single card.

"No! Let me go! Let me go, damn it!" Jared cursed, thrashing around violently again as Reynar moved to stand in front of him.

"Remove Brainwashing." Reynar called.

The card Reynar held glowed and Jared gasped. The black-haired duelists eyes widened and he stopped struggling. The two holding his arms let go and moved a few steps away from him, Jared merely standing there with an amazed look on his face.

"Thank you." He whispered finally.

"I suspected as much." Reynar nodded, placing the card back on his desk.

"…You're a Psychic duelist?" Michael asked.

"I am. I believe Rugal brainwashed your friend and was attempting to use him to get you to defeat me." Reynar explained.

"Yes, exactly." Jared nodded slowly. "I can remember that he ordered that while he was controlling me, but I wasn't able to refuse."

"That's generally how the brainwashing works." Reynar said, scratching the back of his neck.

"You two must have some history. He tried to get me to eliminate you and you're both Psychic duelists." Michael commented.

"We do. I'll just explain it. Originally, we were partners working on finding the origins of what gave duelists the ability to call things into this world. Since we realized we could bring things into this world, we thought maybe we could send things into that world. This part is relevant to you," Reynar paused, nodding towards Michael. "At one point we concentrated our powers on a test object – a deck of Genex cards. Nothing happened, well, not nothing actually. A new card was created. R-Genex Antimatter. That's why we thought you were with the Arcadia Movement; it's a one of a kind card."

"I got this deck from Jared when I was kid though…" Michael said quietly.

"But that doesn't… wait…" Reynar furrowed his brow, his face deep in concentration. "That… that has to be it. Jared, what's your earliest memory?"

"A siren." Jared answered.

"…I believe I know what's going on. Eventually, Rugal wanted to test on humans saying it would have a better result. I disagreed and our department disagreed. But one day when I walked into the lab… I saw he had brought in a child. We argued. Then he pulled a card called Mind Crush out. I… I knew what he was going to do if he wasn't stopped. I used the child as a human shield. I had to." Reynar admitted sadly.

"So that's why I can't remember the other part of my childhood." Jared mumbled.

"I slammed the button to call security. He used Chain Energy to hold me back. He took the child, the deck and our research. It was deemed too dangerous to continue this and the department shut us down. They never learned I had been a Psychic duelist." Reynar finished. "In the end, I was right. On a later confrontation he revealed that he wanted to re-shape the world using Psychic duelists. I've been trying to stop him ever since, and sadly people like Jared get caught in the crossfire."

"How did he end up in Satellite though?" Michael asked.

"I'll field that one."

All four turned to the doorway where Rugal himself stood.

"You!" Reynar shouted.

"I knew having that child and the stolen items around with me would lead to problems. Having the research, I didn't care about the Genex deck so I handed it off to him and put him on a boat leading to Satellite. With his real name lost due to my use of Mind Crush, I renamed him Jared Valcrist. Years later I would encounter him again, at which point I used one of your brainwashed employees to enter him into the system." Rugal explained.

"I can finally settle the score with you." Reynar growled, taking a duel disk out of his desk and sliding it over his arm.

"I'll go get help!" Christine shouted, rushing towards the door.

"Don't bother. Mura and Cain are drawing all of your personal's attention to them." Rugal smirked.

_Back in the lobby…_

"Garlandolf, finish her!"

With a loud crash, Tabitha flew backwards into the wall, her Karakuri Shogun having been destroyed by Cain's Garlandolf, losing the remainder of her points in the process.

All across the lobby were fallen Sector Security officers or just regular employees. Cain looked around with a triumphant look on his face. Mura was simply sitting on chair facing the entrance. The elevator doors opened and Julius stepped out, glaring at Cain when he saw the former King.

"I told you I would walk every path." Cain smirked, raising his already activated duel disk.

"I hoped my assessment was wrong. But it's my duty to do everything in my power to stop you." Julius said proudly, activating his own duel disk.

Mura stood up as a black-haired teen with long bangs entered the lobby.

"I wanted to duel against you ever since I saw you in the tournament." Mura smiled activating his duel disk.

Demetri didn't saw a single world as he activated duel disk. In synch, the four duelists all shouted the same word:

"Duel!"

_Back in the Director's officer…_

"So you did take control of Cain… but… there has to be someone around…" Christine said desperately, rushing out of the room anyway.

"I see I was a tad late. Oh well, I'll reclaim him using Brain Control later." Rugal chuckled upon seeing the glare on Jared's face. "I see you've become fond of that card as well. Getting this position using it… such a bold move. Then you even sent the current staff to the Facility so you could test them for brainwashing! What a show you put on… but you have to be running out of time by now."

"If my last act is stopping you, then so be it." Reynar growled.

"Out of time?" Michael asked.

"Roughly three years ago we came across each other yet again. As usual, I escaped unscathed. But he… Well, I'll let him finish that story." Rugal said with a smile.

"…He infected me with the Crush Card Virus. At first we thought it was three days, then three weeks, then three months. But my health has been rapidly deteriorating recently, so it must have be three years it takes to finish someone off. That's why I had no choice but to make bold moves like taking over Sector Security myself to try and stop him." Reynar explained.

"Well, if your last wish is duel me then I shall indulge you." Rugal said, activating his own duel disk.

"Finally…" Reynar breathed.

"Duel!"

**[Reynar: 8000 / Rugal: 8000]**

"Since you challenged me, I shall begin." Rugal said, drawing his opening card. "I summon Vylon Vanguard, and I'll equip it with Vylon Material."

A floating mechanical looking creature with no legs formed on the field. It had a white body and large gold arms and a golden head. Vylon Vanguard raised its arm and a strange object formed in it, boosting the monster's attack points. [ATK: 1400 - 2000]

"I'll set one card face-down and pass it over to you." Rugal finished.

"Draw," Reynar started. "Come forth, Steelswarm Caller!"

A jet-black humanoid creature with insect wings on its back appeared, shrieking loudly. [ATK: 1700]

"Why in attack position?" Michael asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"His Steelswarm monsters have no defense points." Rugal chuckled, shaking his head.

"That doesn't mater. I set one card and end my turn." Reynar finished.

"Draw. I summon Vylon Cube." Rugal announced.

A white cube with a small gold head and two golden arms appeared next to Vylon Vanguard. [ATK: 800]

"Now, I tune my level four Vylon Vanguard to my level three Vylon Cube." Rugal smiled as the two monsters rose up into the air. "Shining light, descend onto this battlefield to quell the never-ending conflict! Annihilate the opposition! Synchro Summon! Descend, Vylon Sigma!"

Another huge white robot with white wings and three golden rings floating around both of its arms, and one more behind its torso descended onto the field. [ATK: 1800]

"Since Vylon Material was sent to the graveyard, I can add another spell card with 'Vylon' in its name to my hand. I'll add another Vylon Material, which I'll equip to Vylon Sigma. Vylon Cube's effect activates next, letting me add one equip spell card to my hand from deck. I'll add this to my hand, and then I'll equip it with Mage Power, giving Sigma 500 extra attack points for every spell or trap card on my side of the field." Rugal continued.

Vylon Sigma grabbed an object identical to the one Vylon Vanguard had been holding and was surrounded by a golden, glowing aura. [ATK: 1800 - 3900]

"Now, Vylon Sigma attacks! Sigma's effect activates, letting me equip one equip spell card to it from my deck since it's the only monster I control, I'll equip it wit-"

"I chain Infestation Tool! I send one Steelswarm monster from my deck to my graveyard to have one Steelswarm monster I control gain 800 attack points. Since I control one, it's obvious who's getting the boost." Reynar interrupted.

"-with Vylon Segment, which stops you from using monster effects or trap cards which target the equipped monster. Also, Mage Power will now boost Sigma by an additional 500 points." Rugal sighed.

Vylon Sigma's glowing aura grew brighter [ATK: 1800 - 4400], while a purple aura surrounded Steelswarm Caller [ATK: 1700 - 2500]. Putting its hands together, Vylon Sigma fired a beam of golden energy at Steelswarm Caller, destroying the insectoid monster.

**[Reynar: 6100 / Rugal: 8000]**

"Your move." Rugal finished.

"Draw. The effect of the Steelswarm Scout I sent to the graveyard is activated. Since I control no spell or trap cards, I can special summon this card from my graveyard." Reynar explained.

A tiny black creature with a large head appeared. The creature was wearing goggles and put its hand over its eyes, surveying the field. [ATK: 200]

"I can tribute summon this card with one tribute if that tribute is a Steelswarm monster. I tribute Steelswarm Scout to summon Steelswarm Girastag!" Reynar announced.

A taller black creature with orange areas on its arms and chest took the field. One arm ended in a cannon and it had a tail that thrashed around madly as the creature roared. [ATK: 2600]

"Girastag's effect activates. When he's tribute summoned, I can send one card on the field to the graveyard and gain 1000 life points." Reynar explained.

"Remember, you can't target Sigma thanks to Vylon Segment." Rugal reminded him.

"I'm aware. I'm sending your Mage Power to the graveyard." Reynar announced.

Vylon Sigma's golden glow faded, no longer being strong enough to send off the taller creature that stood across from it. Reynar glowed with a green aura as his life points increased.

**[Reynar: 7100 / Rugal: 8000]**

"Now, Girastag! Get rid of Vylon Sigma!" Reynar commanded.

"Mirror Force will destroy your monster." Rugal smirked, the set card flipping up.

"From my hand I chain the quick-pay spell card First Step Towards Infestation! By returning one face-up tributed Steelswarm monster to my hand, I can draw one card!" Reynar countered.

Girastag fired a blast of dark energy from its cannon; a shimmering wall appearing in front of Vylon Sigma moments after the attack was launched. It hit the wall, which glowed, and fired an identical blast towards Girastag. A red aura surrounded Girastag and the monster disappeared, the blast striking the wall behind Reynar and causing visible damage.

"I set one card and end my turn." Reynar finished.

"I draw, and now I'll attack with Vylon Sigma. Using his effect, I'll equip it with another Mage Power from my deck." Rugal said, glancing at the card he drew.

Vylon Sigma began to glow with another golden aura, gaining 1500 attack points from having two other spell/trap cards on the field. [ATK: 2400 - 3900] The Synchro monster fired another blast of golden energy, knocking Reynar into the damaged back wall.

**[Reynar: 3200 / Rugal: 8000]**

"Main Phase 2, I summon Vylon Ohm. Ohm's effect lets me banish one equip spell card from my graveyard. During my next Standby Phase, I can add that card to my hand." Rugal explained.

A white creature with two golden pieces of armor falling off its shoulder appeared next to Sigma. Ohm raised both of its hands into the air, forming an orb of white light which flew off into the sky. [ATK: 1500]

"I end my turn." Rugal finished.

"During your End Phase, I'll activate Infestation Ripples. By paying 500 life points, I can special summon one level four or lower Steelswarm monster from my graveyard. I select Steelswarm Caller." Reynar announced, a red aura surrounding him as his life points were reduced.

**[Reynar: 2700 / Rugal: 8000]**

"Draw. Steelswarm Scout revives itself, now I'll tribute both Steelswarm Scout and Steelswarm Caller to summon Steelswarm Caucastag!" Reynar declared.

A creature that was taller than Girastag appeared in the place of Caller and Scout, bellowing loudly. This creature was the same color as the rest, with insect wings and a tail that smashed violently against the ground. [ATK: 2800]

"Now, Steelswarm Caller's effect activates. He lets me special summon one level four or lower Steelswarm monster from my deck. I'll use it to summon another copy of Steelswarm Caller. Then, Caucastag's effect activates letting me destroy either all other monster or all spell and trap cards on the field. I'll use the latter effect." Reynar continued.

Another Steelswarm Caller appeared next to Caucastag. [ATK: 1700] The larger monster roared, black lightning striking Vylon Sigma and destroying all of the cards equipped to it.

"The effects of Vylon Material and Vylon Segment activate, letting me get two more Vylon spell cards to my hand." Rugal stated, adding two more cards to his hand.

"I'm not done there. I activate Double Summon, tributing Steelswarm Caller to summon Steelswarm Moth!" Reynar shouted.

Caller was replaced by another creature. This one was also black, but its wings were folded over its body like a cloak. The monster hissed softly, its tail sweeping across the ground. [ATK: 2400]

"Caller's effect activates, so I'll summon Steelswarm Needle from my deck. Then, I'll use Steelswarm Moth's effect: When I tribute summon this card by using a Steelswarm monster, by paying 1000 life points, I can select two cards you control and return them to the hand." Reynar explained. "So Ohm and Sigma return to your hand."

**[Reynar: 1700 / Rugal: 8000]**

A humanoid bee creature flew out of its card next to Steelswarm Moth. It had skinny legs, and behind its legs was a large stinger and on its back were tiny insect wings. [ATK: 1850] Steelswarm Moth's wings rose off of its body, flapping slowly a few times to gain speed. In mere moments powerful gusts of wind were pelting Rugal, and both of his monsters disappeared from his field.

"Now, it's time to pay for everything you've done! All three of my creatures attack you directly!" Reynar roared.

Steelswarm Needle was first, flying forward and slamming its stinger into Rugal's abdomen. Moth followed, flapping its wings and sending the Vylon duelist flying into the wall behind him. Caucastag finished off the assault, firing black lightning from its finger tips, electrocuting the silver haired duelist.

**[Reynar: 1700 / Rugal: 950]**

"I set one card. Make your move." Reynar said coldly.

"Ohohoho… you're not above using your powers to harm people. You and I are still quite alike." Rugal chuckled, pushing himself off of the wall. "I'll make the same offer I do every time we meet. Why don't you join me? We can re-shape the world with these powers! I've discovered how it can be done! Your time may be limited, but you can still accomplish something great if you join with me!" Rugal offered.

"Your concept of a world based on natural selection is twisted. You only want to have it because you know Psychic duelists will be at the top of the food chain! Everyone has the potential to become strong!" Reynar shouted.

"I can see there is still no convincing you." Rugal sighed.

"If you're left to your own devices you'll only cause the world more harm." Reynar growled. "Just make your move."

"Very well. Vylon Ohm's effect activates, letting me retrieve the removed Mage Power. Next, I'll activate Photon Lead to summon Vylon Prism from my hand, and then I'll summon Vylon Ohm." Rugal began.

Vylon Prism arrived in light, the creature being a rectangular shape and colored primarily white with arms sticking out of the sides. [ATK: 1500] Vylon Ohm appeared next to it, forming another glowing ball of energy which briefly showed the image of Mage Power before flying up into the air. [ATK: 1500]

"I tune my level four Vylon Ohm to my level four Vylon Prism!" Rugal called as the two monsters rose up high into the air. "Blinding light, descend onto this battlefield and show these fools your brilliance! End the conflict! Synchro Summon! Descend, Vylon Epsilon!"

Another floating legless robotic-looking creature descended from above. This one's body was primarily white with white wings and golden rings around its upper arms and one behind its back. [ATK: 2800]

"Vylon Prism's effect activates. When he is sent from a monster card zone to the graveyard, by paying 500 life points, I can equip it to a face-up monster on my field. Next, I'll equip Epsilon with Vylon Segment, Vylon Component and Mage Power." Rugal smirked.

**[Reynar: 1700 / Rugal: 450]**

Vylon Epsilon let out a low growl, its body glowing gold as various parts of it were upgraded by Vylon Segment, Vylon Component and the addition of Vylon Prism to its body. [ATK: 2800 - 4800]

"With Vylon Prism equipped, when Epsilon attacks he gains 1000 attack points during the damage step. More on that later though. I'll use Epsilon's effect, sending the equipped Vylon Component to the graveyard to destroy Caucastag." Rugal announced.

Vylon Epsilon's golden glow grew brighter as the upgrade made by Vylon Component became a golden orb. Pointing towards Caucastag, the orb flew forward and slammed into the infected monsters chest, the Steelswarm monster shrieking in agony as it exploded.

"Vylon Component's effect activates. Since it was sent to the graveyard, I can add another Vylon spell card to my hand." Rugal smirked.

"He can just keep repeating the process to clear the field…" Jared whispered.

"Sadly, I cannot. Epsilon may only use its effect once per turn. But that won't stop me from equipping it with Vylon Material." Rugal sighed.

Epsilon gripped the same object the Vylon's before him had held, his power increasing further. [ATK: 4300 - 5400]

"Another thing you should know, just in case you survive this turn and try to bring that abomination Girastag to the field: Thanks to Epsilon's other effect, cards equipped to it can't be targeted by cards or effects. Also, Vylon Segment prevents you from targeting Epsilon with traps or monster effects." Rugal explained.

"I see…" Reynar said quietly, looking down at the Girastag in its hand. It was the only card he had left. He could make it through this turn, but in the end he wasn't sure if he'd be able to pull off a reversal.

"Epsilon! Destroy Steelswarm Moth and end this game!" Rugal declared.

The attached Vylon Prism began to glow as Epsilon formed a huge sphere of golden energy. It whipped it towards Steelswarm Moth and there was a large explosion, the four in the room all being pushed back to some degree. When the dust cleared, Reynar was still standing. Next to him, the image of Negate Attack faded out.

"You hung on, eh? But how can you possibly stand up to Epsilon now? Take your turn so I can end this." Rugal scoffed.

"I'll be the one ending this." Reynar said defiantly, drawing the top card of his deck. "Steelswarm Scout revives itself. Then…" Rugal turned over his drawn card to look at it and his eyes widened. "…Then I'll end this duel."

"Hm? What are you going on about?" Rugal asked.

"You'll finally pay for everything you've done. By tributing Steelswarm Scout, Steelswarm Moth, and Steelswarm Needle, I can summon this card!" Reynar shouted, holding the card up. "These souls shall pave the way! Return from the depths of the earth and swallow the light! Rise up, Steelswarm Hercules!"

The three monsters became three pitch black spheres, which merged together to form a larger sphere. The room began to shake and a deafening roar rang out as the orb began to change, transforming into a gigantic creature. The huge form of Steelswarm Hercules towered high above Vylon Epsilon, its body being black and gold with horns of the same color jutting out all over its body. The leader of the Steelswarm had finally arrived. [ATK: 3200]

"Oh my…" Rugal whispered.

"Now, Hercules! I'll give you half of my life points, and in exchange cleanse this field! Shattering Shockwave!" Reynar shouted as a red aura surrounded him.

**[Reynar: 850 / Rugal: 450]**

Hercules roared, a red wave of energy spreading out from its body. The wave came into contact with Epsilon, the creature of light exploding outwards as all the cards behind it did the same. The wave continued on and struck Rugal, dropping the Vylon duelist down onto one knee. On the other side of the field, Reynar began to cough. He wiped his hand across his mouth and it came away red. He was determined to see this through to the end.

"Vylon Material and Vylon Segment's effects activate." Rugal said rather calmly, adding two more cards to his hand.

"Steelswarm Hercules! Finish him!" Reynar roared.

"From my hand I activate The High Priestess' Staff." Rugal smirked. "When one of your monsters declares an attack, I can negate it and end the Battle Phase. Then, you take 500 points of damage. Also, if I control no monsters I can activate this card from my hand."

A pulse of energy that Michael was getting familiar to feeling radiated out from Hercules, a smile crossing Rugal's face as it did. Hercules reached out with its hand, but a strange staff appeared in front of Rugal, a barrier forming around him that not even the might of Hercules could penetrate.

**[Reynar: 350 / Rugal: 450]**

"That's one powerful card…" Michael muttered.

"It's quite a rare one at that. Despite my best efforts, I haven't been able to get my hands on a copy. So I borrowed this from your friend in the fedora." Rugal chuckled.

"You borrowed it from…" Michael paused as everything came together for him. With all that had happened he hadn't realized that if it hadn't been the Director who kidnapped his friends then it was likely that they had been abducted by the Arcadia Movement. "It was you who kidnaped them!" Michael shouted.

"The last horse crosses the finish line," Rugal laughed as he stood up again. "I'll deal with you later. Are you finished, Reynar?" He asked.

"…Yes." Reynar said quietly.

"Good, draw." Rugal started. "First, Ohm's effect returns Mage Power to my hand. Next, I activate Vylon Matter. I return three equip spells to my deck to activate one of two effects. I return three copies of Vylon Material to my deck to draw one card."

"If he doesn't get anything good, Reynar can still hang on." Jared said hopefully.

"Maybe…" Michael said doubtfully.

"I activate another Vylon Matter, returning two Vylon Segments and Vylon Component to my deck to draw another card." Rugal said, his face lighting up when he saw his drawn. "I activate Monster Reborn! Return, Vylon Epsilon!"

A bright light enveloped the field, Steelswarm Hercules shielding its eyes as Vylon Epsilon returned. [ATK: 2800]

"He has Mage Power in his hand still…" Michael said quietly. Glancing over to his friend he saw Jared's face fall in disappointment.

"But I have something special for you. I summon Vylon Sphere, and then I'll use Machine Duplication to summon a second copy from my deck." Rugal continued.

A small gold-and-white sphere with two purple eyes and two small arms coming out of its side fell onto the field from above, an identical copy falling down to it seconds later. [ATK: 400]

"Now, I tune my level eight Vylon Epsilon to my two level one Vylon Spheres!" Rugal called as all three monsters rose up into the air.

"He's using two Tuner monsters?" Jared asked.

"It's just like Antimatter." Michael noted.

"Conquering light, descend onto this battle and judge those who stand before you! Bring the world into a new age! Descend, Vylon Omega!" Rugal shouted.

A huge golden machine-like creature with two spiked silver rings around its shoulders appeared. The creature had black wings and a single red eye and its helmet was shaped like its namesake symbol. Around its body floated another golden omega symbol. Vylon Omega and Steelswarm Hercules faced each other, ready for the endgame of the duel. [ATK: 3200]

"Vylon Omega's monster effect! When it's Synchro summoned, all monster that were normal summoned are destroyed! Say good-bye to Hercules! Vanquishing Light!" Rugal laughed.

A golden pulse shot out from Omega, striking Hercules and turning the Steelswarm leader to dust, leaving Reynar completely defenseless.

"Now, Vylon Omega's other effect. I'll equip it with the Vylon Prism in my graveyard, and then I'll also equip it with the Mage Power I just got back." Rugal continued.

Omega glowed with a powerful aura as Mage Power took effect and Vylon Prism attached itself to Omega's body. [ATK: 3200 - 4200]

"The last card in your hand is Girastag. Your field is empty. You can't defend against this attack. This lengthy battle between us shall finally end here." Rugal smiled.

"I… I tried my best and I still lost..." Reynar whispered.

"You simply can't compare to me anymore. If you had only continued to work with me, this conclusion could have been avoided. But there's no turning back now." Rugal said. "Vylon Omega! Attack him directly! Judgment of Omega!"

Another pulse of energy hit Michael, this time coming from Omega. The air in the room got heavy, and Omega's single eye began to glow, but nothing happened at first. Then a huge pillar of light smashed through the ceiling, striking the Director full on. Reynar screamed in pain, and eventually the light faded. Reynar feel to his knees and then fell forward onto his stomach, a final groan escaping his lips.

**[Reynar: 0 / Rugal: 450]**

"Heh… heh… he took more out of than I thought." Rugal laughed, falling down to one knee and clutching his abdomen where he had been hit by Steelswarm Sting.

"Is he…?" Michael asked quietly.

"Not yet…" Reynar said quietly, his voice barely above a whisper. Rugal's head snapped up, his eyes wide with surprise. With what looked like great effort, he turned his head to face Michael and Jared. "I'm… I'm sorry… because of me, you lost memories of your childhood… and even your real name… all so I could try and stop him… but in the end I couldn't even do that… I'm sorry…"

Jared's face contorted. The black haired duelist was angry that he could quite possibly never know his real name, or who his real parents were. But it had been for a greater good, to try and stop the man who had controlled his mind for some time now. The conflicting emotions showed on his face and a strained sound escaped Jared's throat, he turned away and stared out the window.

Reynar's eyes closed and the rise and fall of his chest stopped. Whether it had been the Crush Card finally taking effect, or if Omega's attack had just done too much to him, he was still. The Director's fight against the Arcadia Movement had ended.

"Finally… the last obstacle has been removed." Rugal breathed. The silver-haired duelist shuffled over to Reynar and removed the Steelswarm duelist's deck and pocketed it.

"You want to re-shape the world using your powers… to create a world where people are judged based on what they can bring to the table…" Michael muttered to himself quietly.

"Yes, that's correct. Will you join me?" Rugal asked, hearing the Genex duelist due to the silence in room.

"I… won't." Michael said, shaking his head.

"What a waste. But it won't matter soon enough. If you can survive in the re-shaped world, we will meet again then." Rugal said, starting to make his way towards the door.

"You think I'm just going to let you go after everything you've done here? You do… this… you kidnap my friends… and you think you can just walk away?" Michael shouted, anger welling up inside him.

"It was a worth a shot," Rugal sighed. "I suppose now would be a good time to reclaim that lost pawn." Rugal said, sliding a card out of his pocket.

"Not again… Not Brain Control…" Jared whispered as he turned around, a few tears rolling down his cheeks from earlier.

Things seemed to be moving in slow motion for Michael. Rugal was raising the card, which was clearly Brain Control while Jared just stood there, unable to move. He could do what Reynar had done and let this happen so he could have a shot at stopping him later, or he could take this one for his friend. Jared never wanted him to take down the Director, and even if he had he hadn't done that. He still owed him one. He moved between the two just as the card flashed, Michael feeling a strange sensation taking over his body.

"Michael, no!" Jared shouted.

"Well… how unexpected. I was just going to let you go, but I have no problems with this. Now, stand aside." Rugal ordered. Michal nodded and moved out of the way. Again Rugal held up Brain Control and the card flashed, but nothing happened.

"It didn't work…" Jared whispered.

"Aghh!" Rugal shouted, clutching his head and crushing the Brain Control card in the process. "I don't have enough energy left… come on, let's go. Make sure he doesn't follow." Rugal said slowly, shuffling out of the door.

"Michael…" Jared whispered.

The brainwashed Michael kept a steady gaze on the black haired duelist as the two exited the room, closing the door behind him and leaving Jared with the body of the Director.

"…AGHHHH!" Jared screamed, falling to the ground and slamming his fist on the floor, the stress of the day getting to him. Sure, he had been freed from the control of the Arcadia Movement, but in hadn't come at a cheap price. He had brought Michael here, and now his friend was under the same spell he had been.

Suddenly, the door slammed open and Christine rushed in, Everest in tow.

"I'm sorry I took so long, but I brought-" Christine stopped dead in her tracks and her hand flew over her mouth when she the scene. The hole in the roof from Omega, the crying Jared on the floor and the unmoving body of the Director. "I was too late…" Christine whispered, falling to her knees.

"Oh hell…" Everest said quietly, scratching the back of his neck. For the three remained in the room in complete silence, each of them taking the events in for themselves.

_Back in the lobby…_

Cain's Northwemko shattered as Archlord Zerato's effect destroyed it. Julius was holding his own again Cain, the former King having an empty field while Julius had Zerato on his side. At the other end of the lobby Demetri lay defeated on the floor, Mura sitting back in his chair.

The elevator doors dinged and Cain groaned, visibly annoyed.

"Hey, Mura, you handle this one." Cain ordered.

"Getting tired?" Mura chuckled, standing up and activating his duel disk.

"No need."

Rugal stepped out into the lobby, being supported by Michael.

"What the hell is this?" Cain shouted.

"Worry not, he's an ally now. Come on, our job here is done." Rugal said as Michael helped him towards the door. A speechless Julius watched on as Michael led Rugal out of the building, Mura and Cain following behind them.

"He was here the whole time… they were just distractions." Julius said quietly. Across the lobby, Demetri propped himself up on the chair Mura had been sitting on and locked eyes with the Zera duelist.

Down in the lobby and up in the Director's office, the feeling was the same. Today had been an undeniable victory for the Arcadia Movement.

* * *

><p>I really enjoyed writing this chapter, so I hope you all enjoyed reading it. This is probably around the halfway point, so we still have a ways to go before this is over. I'm really drawing a blank on things to say here, so I'll just wish all a good day and thank you for reading.<p> 


	18. Chapter 18: Synchro Destructor

The mood in the Director's office was grim. Reynar's body had been taken away along with many of the employees, including Tabitha, who had been taken to the hospital to have their injuries treated. There was no questioning done to any of the five in the office because, well, most everyone who would've done the questioning was either in the office or in the hospital.

Demitri was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall. He'd refused to go to the hospital, instead insisting to Julius that he was fine. Julius sat in the Director's chair, with Everest, Christine and Jared standing in front of him. Julius had elected to take charge for the time being and was sitting simply because the few blows he'd taken from Cain had left him weak-kneed.

"What do we do now?" Everest asked, finally breaking the silence.

"What can we do? We have no Director. A large number of our employees are in the hospital. The Security officers who were patrolling the city at the time aren't enough to stand up to the entire Arcadia Movement…" Julius rattled out, running his hand through his short hair. "I think we've lost the war…"

"Actually… you do still have one asset." Jared said, taking a step forward.

"Please, go on." Julius said, intrigued by the teenagers words.

"It may sound a little conceited, but I'm your asset. I remember everything about the Arcadia Movement from when I was controlled. I know all the ins and outs of their headquarters." Jared announced.

"We still don't have enough manpower to take them on. Besides, we only have a handful of duelists with Psychic abilities in our midst. Everyone in the Arcadia Movement has it. They could just use Brain Control to thin our ranks while growing theirs." Julius sighed, shaking his head.

"So you're just going to give up?" Christine asked. "The Director knew he didn't have all that much time left. But he didn't give up. He devoted the last of his time to trying to stop a man he knew was a threat to society. Are you going to just put an end to all his efforts?"

"It's not our fight to finish." Julius sighed.

"Well, we'll make it our fight." Everest said.

"You too?" Julius groaned.

"I owe a lot to that guy. Besides, from what I've been told about the guy running the Arcadia Movement, he is gonna try and re-shape or restart the world or somethin', then I don't see any harm in going out fighting." Everest explained.

"We have to try and keep order. With Reynar gone, he's probably going to start making big moves now. You're high up on the totem pole, even if your jurisdiction is Satellite, I'll push through the paper work to get you transferred here. We need strong people here. You can't turn your back on your job. We need you." Julius pleaded.

Everest paused to consider this. "Y'know… I only got into this position after he became the Director. He thought I could help him out a lot by stopping Rugal from abducting more people from Satellite. But if he really is going to try abducting more people, it would just slow his plans plus. Plus the force over there hasn't been hit very much at all, so me doing this ain't a big lose. So if Reynar was going down because of how he got his job, I'd be next. So I'll turn this in now." Everest said. The large man removed the badge on his chest and placed it on the table.

"Do you know what you're saying?" Julius exploded, leaping to his feet. "You're just going to abandon those people out there? So what if this isn't your jurisdiction, they need you! You told me you wanted to protect people, so are you really going to just leave them to pursue a personal vendetta?"

"That man has committed crimes as well! I'm going to bring him to justice so those people won't need to be protected from him!" Everest argued.

"Fine! Go then!" Julius huffed, snatching the badge of this desk. "This place is falling apart and you just decide to pursue him personally? Whatever's going through your head, I'm telling you it's the wrong idea."

"I'm going too." Demetri said, slowly rising to his feet.

"Me too." Christine agreed.

"You can't." Julius said, fixing Christine with a stern look." Demetri is just an intern, but you were the Director's assistant. Do you know what it would look like if you just disappeared after his death? The Director dying and the faithful assistant nowhere to be found? Awfully suspicious if you ask me."

"But he needs to be stopped!" Christine protested.

"And what WE need to do is rebuild. We control Sector Security for the entirety of Neo Domino City! You know the ins and outs of the system better than anyone! Please, put revenge aside and think of the ordinary people! Everest may be leaving, but we can't keep losing people!" Julius cried.

"So it's a real bigger picture moment, huh…" Christine said quietly. She remained silent for a few moments before letting out a long, shaky sigh. "I… I really want to stop him… but the people come first…" Christine said quietly.

"See, Everest? This isn't just about what you want. You have to focus on protecting the whole of Neo Domino City. You're one of the strongest duelists we have. Demetri, the same goes for you. We need every man we can get right now." Julius said, still trying to persuade the larger duelist to stay.

"My job was to bring evil people to justice to protect the population," Everest said, taking a deep breath. "I'm doing exactly that. Can't you see? This isn't a vendetta. I'm doing what my job said I'd be doing, and if you won't allow that then I'll do it on my own."

"…Very well. Demetri?" Julius asked. The short-haired duelist continued to look at Everest, his gaze softening a bit. He hated to admit it, and as much as he wanted him to stay, he had to admit that what Everest wanted to do was commendable. He then turned his attention back to the black-haired duelist who didn't respond with words, but simply shook his head.

"We can't spare any manpower to help you, but… I wish you the best of luck. You probably have much to discuss, and we have a lot to get done. Especially with you all leaving." Julius said, his tone getting quieter as he spoke. The Zera duelist fell into his seat and nodded at the door.

Demetri was closest to the door, so he exited first. Jared followed, and then Everest.

"Everest!"

Everest glanced back at Julius, who still had his badge in his hand.

"…If you do come back, this will be waiting for you." Julius sighed, placing the badge in the top drawer. Everest smiled and the former Head of Sector Security in Satellite exited the office.

_In Rugal's limousine…_

Cain and Rugal sat at one end, talking in hushed tones. But even from here Michael, who was sitting next to Mura, could hear the agitation in Cain's voice and the weariness in Rugal's. Suddenly, he felt a small nudge and glanced over at the headphones wearing duelist beside him.

"So, why'd you do it? The boss didn't plan on you joining the team." Mura asked quietly.

"I… was protecting Jared from having to go through all this again. He's been through enough for now." Michael replied in an equally quiet tone.

"You don't even know why he did it, do you? He had feelings for this one girl here, and ended up getting arrested when he confronted us and it turned bad. When Rugal found out who he really was, well he figured he'd break him out of the Facility and reunite them." Mura explained, chuckling softly.

"Oh…" Michael said quietly.

"Yep. You aren't a hero. Doesn't even matter, Alyssa didn't seem to care for him. Then again, she's been very cold since day one. So maybe in the end you pushed him away from something that was hurting him." Mura shrugged.

"…Hey, can I ask you a question?" Michael asked.

"Shoot." Mura said, raising an eyebrow.

"Do you really believe in his cause?" Michael asked, nodding towards Rugal.

"Completely, and before you ask, yes this is really me talking and not some mind control. I think his cause is admirable. Creating a world where people are judged on what they contribute to society, not on how much money you make from your position your parents helped you up into. A world where everyone contributes for the benefit of society, a place where those who can are rewarded and those who can't aren't, regardless of standing or who your parents are. A place where having a lot of money doesn't determine how important you are… it's all for a better tomorrow… and that's something I want to fight for." Mura explained with a slight smile on his face the whole time.

"You seem pretty alright." Michael noted.

"Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well…" Michael couldn't finish his sentence and instead gestured to Rugal.

"Oh man," Mura laughed. "You think everyone in the Arcadia Movement is evil just because we follow him? There are good and bad people on both sides, Aker. I'm sure whatever kind of world you want to make there are a few bad eggs who only want it made to benefit them."

Michael took this in, and then the vehicle came to stop. As the quartet in the back of the limousine exited, they were greeted by someone wearing the typical Arcadia Movement uniform. The person didn't seem at all surprised by Michael being there with the rest of them. Rugal said something about taking them to the testing facility.

The Arcadia member nodded and led the group around the huge glass skyscraper that was the Arcadia Movements headquarters and towards a small, grey, dome-shaped building. Michael entered to find it completely void of furniture, the only thing in the room appearing to be a large amount of duel fields.

"Mr. Aker, I'm going to need you to give me your deck." Rugal said, turning around and holding out his hand.

"Why?" Michael asked. He wanted to hold onto this deck, he tried as hard as he could. But Brain Control was making his body on his own, slipping the duel disk off of his arm and handing it to Rugal. The first deck he'd ever owned was being returned to its original owner.

"It is my property, after all. Plus, as a member of the Arcadia Movement you'll be given a new deck." Rugal explained. But the silver-haired man could see the disappointment in Michael's eyes. "You really don't want to give up this deck, do you?" Rugal asked.

"No sir." Michael replied quietly.

"Fine. I'll test you then. You'll duel one of the better Arcadia Movement duelists. If you win, you can do whatever you wish. But if you lose, your deck is handed over. I need to unwind from a tough day anyway, I think watching a nice duel would do that." Rugal said, chuckling to himself at the last bit.

"I'll do it!" Cain shouted, rushing over to the other side of the dueling field.

"No, I'll do it. You already lost to him and neither of your skills have improved, so it'd be pointless." Mura said, walking towards the side of the dueling field Cain was already standing on.

"Who do you think you are?" Cain demanded.

"You know full well who I am, don't you?" Mura asked with a blank expression, activating his duel disk as he approached Cain. Cain's eyes widened and he seemed to hesitate before moving on to the sidelines.

"Well, best of luck. You'll need it." Rugal said, handing Michael's duel disk back to him.

"Thank you." Michael said, securing the duel disk and activating it. He and Mura faced each other and they both nodded once ready.

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000 / Mura: 8000]**

"You can start." Mura offered.

"Thank you," Michael began as he drew a card. He couldn't do much right away, so he'd build up a defense using Genex Gaia and Scrap-Iron Scarecrow. "I set one monster, set one card and end my turn."

"That's all?" Mura chuckled as he drew for his turn. "…But it doesn't look like I can't do much better. I set two cards and summon Meklord Army of Skiel."

A blue robotic creature that vaguely resembled a hummingbird formed on the field. It had twin lances instead of arms and a strange red pattern was lit up on the black screen that was its face. [ATK: 1200]

"…That's all." Mura finished.

"Not attacking?" Michael asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I don't trust Skiel to get over whatever you set monster is, so I'll save myself the damage." Mura replied.

"Alright then. Draw!" Michael declared. "You were right not to attack. My set monster had 1900 defense points. But that's about to become meaningless. I tribute my set Genex Gaia to summon Genex Army!"

Genex Gaia appeared briefly, being replaced by the much taller form of Genex Army. The huge camouflaged machine monster flexed its free arm and then fired the missile launcher on its shoulder, Skiel being obliterated by the attack and smoke obscuring Mura's field. [ATK: 2300]

But then something odd happened. There was a strange sound, much like a computer booting up. Then the smoke disappeared, revealing a more advanced version of Skiel. It still resembled a bird creature, but it was harder to tell what kind of bird it was based on. The last, most interesting part of the creature was the strange glowing core that was visible in the center of the monsters chest. [ATK: 2300]

"It got stronger after being destroyed?" Michael asked in amazement.

"No. Since one of my cards was destroyed by a card effect, I was able to special summon Meklord Emperor Skiel from my hand. Now, what will you do?" Mura asked with a smirk on his face.

"I'll use Double Summon to summon R-Genex Overseer! I don't have a card to special summon, but that doesn't matter since I'm just going to tune it to Genex Army!" Michael declared. "Our hearts beat as one, opening the path to a new horizon! The warrior who out speeds all! Synchro Summon! Ride on, Genex Ally Axel!"

Overseer appeared for a few brief seconds, becoming two green Synchro gates almost the second it appeared. Genex Army entered the gates, and in a flash of white light Genex Army disappeared and Axel leapt out of the Synchro gates. [ATK: 2500]

"A Synchro monster…" Mura said quietly.

"Axel, attack his Meklord Emperor!" Michael commanded.

Axel skated forward, jumped high into the air and then brought its foot down. Axel kicked off the Meklord's body, revealing a gaping wound that was shooting out sparks and wires. Skiel slowly started to descend, and then the blue robot exploded.

**[Michael: 8000 / Mura: 7700]**

"Your move." Michael finished.

"Draw!" Mura declared. The black-haired duelist paused briefly and then nodded to himself. "Looks like I can end this right now. I summon Meklord Army of Wisel!"

A humanoid white robot with one hand that ended in what resembled a gun and its other arm having a strange, thick green covering over it took the field. It had a different red pattern on its face than Skiel, and stood silently awaiting orders. [ATK: 1800]

"Does it have an effect?" Michael inquired, curious as to why Mura would summon a weaker creature than Axel after declaring he would win this turn.

"It does, but it's irrelevant. I activate my face-down Destruct Potion. This lets me destroy one of my monsters to gain life points equal to its attack." Mura explained.

A giant hand burst out of the ground and grabbed Wisel, crushing the robotic monster with ease. As Wisel's remnants faded away, a green aura surrounded the Meklord duelist and boosted his life points.

**[Michael: 8000 / Mura: 9500]**

"You're going to summon another Meklord?" Michael guessed.

"Yup. Come forth, Meklord Emperor Granel!" Mura shouted.

A gigantic brown robot that dwarfed Skiel in size formed. The monster appeared to be formed of many different parts, each of them strange in their own right. Again, Michael could only focus on the glowing green core… and its sky-high attack points. [ATK: 0 - 4750]

"4750?" Michael asked in astonishment.

"Granel's attack points are equal to half of my life points." Mura explained.

"Even if you use Limiter Removal though, your monster won't be able to wipe out all my life points." Michael pointed.

"Well, that's because he's not done powering up." Mura chuckled.

"He's not?"

"No. It's time to show you the true ability of the Meklords, better known as the Synchro Killers. Granel! Absorb Genex Ally Axel!" Mura commanded.

"Synchro Killer?" Michael shouted.

Granel's red pattern glowed and its chest cavity opened up, exposing the green core. Ropes of white light shot out, ensnaring Axel and began to pull the Synchro monster forward despite its struggles. When it got close enough, Axel became an orb of white light which flew into Granel's core, making it grow larger. [ATK: 4750 - 7250]

"This is the power of the Meklords. Synchro summoning is one of, if not the most popular strategy around. It has completely changed the face of the game. That's why the Meklords were created, to give Synchro monsters something to fear." Mura explained.

"I can still hang on." Michael said, attempting to sound cocky, Mura's hand was running low on cards. If he could coax him into using Limiter Removal, he could block the attack with Scrap Iron Scarecrow and this mechanical monstrosity would be destroyed during the End Phase.

"What if I do this?" Mura asked with a smile as activated his last set card.

Granel began to glow with a powerful brown aura, the activated card appearing next to it. Michael gave silent cheer: He had gotten Mura to use Limiter Removal. [ATK: 7250 - 14500]

"Now, before I attack, there's one last piece of business to take care of." Mura grinned as he slid Mystical Space Typhoon into his duel disk.

Scrap Iron Scarecrow flew high into the air and then shattered, Michael being left completely defenseless in the face of the overwhelming might of Granel.

"This is the power of the Arcadia Movements elite!" Mura roared. "Now, Granel! End this! Grand Slaughter Cannon!"

A pulse of energy radiated out from Granel and Michael's eyes widened. This was going to hurt. Granel charged the blast and the fired, the beam enveloping the Genex duelist completely. The pain was incredible, but he couldn't move, he was stuck in place due to the force of the blast. When the attack finally finished, Michael fell backwards onto the ground, taking in deep breathes of air.

**[Michael: 0 / Mura: 9500]**

"I lost to that?" Cain sneered.

"_You_ lost to this too, Cain. With a deck that has so few Synchro monsters at that." Mura laughed as he walked across the field towards Michael.

"Shut up." Cain growled.

"You certainly delivered on your promise Mura. You said you would show him the Arcadia Movements power, and I think that was probably on the greatest displays possible." Rugal said, clapping his hands a few times.

"Thank you." Mura said, coming to a stop in front of the downed Michael. "If it had been any other deck, you probably would've had a better chance. I'm probably one of the worst opponents you could've faced." Mura said in an oddly consoling way, helping the defeated Michael onto his feet.

"…I did the best with what I had and still lost. I didn't even make a dent in your life points." Michael smiled sadly. But he had to keep his end of the bargain. There was absolutely no question of it; since even if he tried to refuse a simple order from Rugal would force him to do it thanks to Brain Control. He slid his duel disk off of his arm and held it out to the silver haired man again.

Rugal accepted it and removed both the main deck and extra deck, passing the stacks of cards to the Arcadia member who had accompanied them to the dueling facility. Rugal whispered something to the robed woman, who nodded and produced to similar stacks of cards from her pocket.

"I'm getting her deck?" Michael asked.

"No, I just asked her to bring these along. I can use it monitor your abilities more easily." Rugal explained as he slotted the two stacks into the deck slots of the duel disk. He looked at the device and then nodded, handing the duel disk back to the brown-haired boy.

"What kind of cards are they?" Michael wondered.

"Don't look at them. I want to see how you do with an entirely new deck you've never played with or seen before. See how much potential you really have." Rugal said. Brain Control kicked in and Michael nodded.

The former Genex duelist kept a fixed gaze on his duel disk for the longest time. His fingers wouldn't respond to his minds request to grab the deck and look through it. Finally, he raised his head to ask a question he'd been curious about for some time.

"What are those pulses of energy anyway?" Michael asked.

_Back in Neo Domino City…_

"Those pulses of energy mean the Psychic duelist has put enough energy into it that the creature has been fully brought into this world. In that state, it can cause real damage." Jared explained. He and Everest were sitting at Demetri's table, while Demetri leaned against his kitchen counter, drinking from a bottle of water.

The trio had arrived at Demetri's apartment, the Dark duelist's only words on the trip being 'turn here', 'turn here' and 'We're here'. They'd felt another pulse of energy while driving and Everest asked, knowing Jared knew quite a bit about the Arcadia Movement.

"How's he gonna re-shape the world like that?" Everest asked.

"Imagine a sheet of plastic wrap. Then imagine you push your finger through it. It leaves a hole, but the plastic wrap is still intact. But do it enough times, and the plastic wrap gets ruined. Now image that plastic wrap is the barrier between this world and the one Psychic duelists draw their power from." Jared explained.

"So each pulse means another hole has been punched in the barrier…" Everest murmured.

"Yeah… Hey, why are you so quiet?" Jared asked, turning to look at the other black-haired duelist.

"I hate the sound of my own voice." Demetri said after a long drink of water.

"Stay on topic. You know the inner workings of this group, so what's the plan?" Everest asked.

"Rugal actually ordered quite a few members to the prisons. Early tomorrow would be the best bet, when it's still dark. There's a brief period where the doormen go inside to rouse their replacements. That would be best." Jared said.

In all reality, they could make a move today. But Jared was just too tired. This day had taken its toll on him, and we wanted nothing more than to rest for the rest of this day so he'd be ready for anything the Arcadia Movement was going to throw at him tomorrow.

"But why the prisons?" Everest wondered aloud.

As much as he wanted to answer that question, he didn't know the answer. But whatever it was, while it couldn't be good, it was giving them an opening.

_Back at the Arcadia Movement headquarters…_

Rugal stood with Mura and Michael, Cain having gone off back to his room. The Vylon duelist had just explained what would be happening tomorrow. Michael had his head down, thinking very hard about what the silver-haired duelist had just said. He glanced over at Mura and saw the Meklord duelist smiling. He recalled the black-haired duelist's words back in the limousine.

_A world where everyone contributes to the benefit of society, a place where those who can are rewarded and those you can't aren't. A place where having a lot of money doesn't determine how important you are… it's all for a better tomorrow… and that's something I want to fight for._

Michael was still contemplating those words when he heard Mura speak up again.

"Finally… everything will come together tomorrow." Mura smiled.

"Yes… a new age is about to dawn." Rugal chuckled.

* * *

><p>The duel in this chapter wasn't that good, and overall this chapter was pretty slow. Hopefully the next chapter will make up for that, I have quite a bit planned for it. Next one should be up in three or four days, so I'll see you all then. Thanks for reading and have a great day!<p> 


	19. Chapter 19: All Out Attacks

_Later that day…_

Jared sat on the couch watching the evening news while Everest and Demetri played a game of cards over in the kitchen. There was no shortage of news for that day. The Fortune Cup ended in the victory of a complete unknown who then disappeared, the Director of Sector Security had passed away and several other members of Sector Security had been injured. The camera footage clearly showed three very recognizable figures: Cain, Michael, and Rugal.

The two newscasters were arguing over what should be done, what kind of action should be taken. Michael's origins were again called into question as still nothing was known about the Genex duelist. The arguments continued and with a heavy sigh, Jared switched off the television.

"He's gonna have quite a bit to deal with when this is all over." Everest observed.

"He doesn't deserve all that…" Jared said sadly.

"Yeah, like the media is gonna care. He came here illegally and was involved in both the harm of officials and the death of the Director of Sector Security. I think they may just lock him up and throw away the key." Everest said.

"Come on, don't talk like that." Jared pleaded.

"Full house." Demetri said, laying down his hand.

"Straight." The Laval duelist sighed, laying down his own hand. "Hey, I didn't say I wanted that to happen. He actually seems like an alright kid. Kind of a nervous nelly, but he seemed alright." Everest said.

Jared just remained silent and lay down on the couch, staring up at the ceiling while Demetri and Everest played another hand.

_Back at the Arcadia Movement HQ…_

Michael and the others watched as more and more Arcadia duelists trickled in and began to duel each other. Cain had left to go do other things, just leaving Michael, Mura and Rugal to stand and watch the duels. One thing that Michael found very surprising was that all these duelists were releasing small pulses of energy as they summoned powerful monsters. They certainly weren't as strong as some of the others he'd felt, but if what he'd been told about these pulses were true he was surprised any sort of barrier between the worlds had held this long.

"It's getting late, I'm going to retire." Rugal announced. "I'd suggest you two do the same. Tomorrow is going to be a _very _busy day and since you two seem to not hate each other, Mura, would you mind watching over him?"

"No problem." Mura nodded.

"Excellent. Michael, do as Mura says… unless it conflicts with an order I give you." Rugal said.

"You think I'm going to betray you?" Mura asked, seeming slightly offended at the lack of trust.

"You can never be too careful. I can't afford any surprises, especially not now." Rugal chuckled. With that, the silver-haired duelist exited the training field, leaving Michael and Mura to watch the various duels going on.

"Alright… are you tired?" Mura asked, turning to look at the brown-haired teenager.

"Exhausted." Michael confirmed.

"Alright then, let's go." Mura said, leading the way towards the door. The two walked in silence as they exited the building, the sky having gone dark at some point while they were inside. They entered the huge skyscraper that was the Arcadia Movement Headquarters and entered an elevator; Mura selected the 23rd floor from the array of buttons.

"So… how do you know Security won't try and stop you?" Michael asked, breaking the silence. "Your group has committed quite a few crimes by my count, and even went as far as to attack them directly." Michael added.

"We can almost certainly overpower them in the weakened state they're in now… if for some reason we can't, we'll just get rid of them using our powers… but that doesn't really matter, they won't interfere with our plans for tomorrow." Mura explained.

"Right…" Michael nodded quietly, remembering what he'd been told earlier. "So is it really… safe, I guess, for me to here? I think I've made more enemies than friends." Michael asked.

"Oh, that. Yeah, I'll admit, some people here really don't like you. Vincent, Cain, Jehan, for one reason or another they all detest you." Mura nodded. "I'll admit that I don't understand Jehan very well. But you've only met… once, I believe? You must've done something to aggravate him. You should've heard him at the Fortune Cup. He was rooting for your opponent every match." Mura said.

"Jehan… am I going to have any problems with him?" Michael asked, recalling the red-haired duelist's attempts to 'deal with him' when he was leaving the boat, which had only been stopped by Mura and Warren. "Oh. Thanks for stopping him on the boat the other day." Michael said, realizing he never thanked Mura or Warren for that.

"Oh uhh… thanks, don't mention it." Mura blinked. "Anyway, you don't have to worry about Jehan for the time being. He's with Alyssa, getting ready for tomorrow." Mura explained.

The elevator dinged and the two stepped out into a hallway that Michael found resembled the ones in Travis' fathers' hotel. His eyes widened as he remembered that it was the Arcadia Movement who'd taken his friends. That meant if they were going to be anywhere, it would be in this building. With any luck, he could sneak out after Mura left and try and find them.

Mura led him down the hallway and opened a door, motioning for him to go in. Michael entered and was visibly surprised, the room resembling a hotel room. A decent sized bed, a television, a nightstand, a small bookshelf with some books and a bathroom. Not bad, not bad at all.

"Surprised? We treat our people well." Mura chuckled.

"Yeah… just a little." Michael replied.

"Anyway, I'm heading off to bed myself. Since the boss is probably going to be busy tomorrow, I'll come and get you. You won't want to miss what's going to happen. So don't leave this room until I come and get you." Mura explained. He gave a final nod to Michael and closing the door.

Immediately, Michael headed over to the door to try and leave and search for his friends. But as he stood in front of the door, he couldn't make his arms rise to grip the doorknob. No matter how much he told his brain to it, his arms simply wouldn't move. With a defeated sigh, Michael crept into bed and waited for sleep to take him away.

_6:30 AM at the Facility…_

"Alright, let's do this." Jehan grinned. He and the blue-haired woman Alyssa stood at a back entrance to the Facility, a mind controlled guard opening the door and motioning for them to enter.

Once inside, the guard led them through the levels of the prison, up to the Warden's office. Since they had their heads down and were being escorted by a prison guard, out of the few people they passed, no one gave them a second glance. It was only when they reached the guard standing watch outside of the Warden's office did problems arise.

"You two!" The guard shouted, recognizing the two from pictures the Warden had shown him. He'd been told to immediately call for a lockdown if he saw any members of the Arcadia Movement up here. He reached for his radio, but Jehan was faster on the draw.

"Dimensional Prison!" Jehan shouted.

The guard disappeared into the void, his radio clattering to the ground where he once stood.

"Adrian, what's going on out there?" A voice hollered from behind the door.

"Overreacted a little, don't you think?" Alyssa said coldly, still clutching the Mind Control card in her hand.

"Do you want the prison going into a lockdown? No? Didn't think so." Jehan spat. The Worm duelist looked at the guard and nodded towards the door. "Open it." Jehan ordered.

The guard nodded and removed a key ring from his belt, selecting one and inserting it into the knob. He pushed the door open and motioned for Jehan and Alyssa to enter.

"Hello hello." Jehan smiled as he entered the office.

"What- Where's Adrian?" The Warden shouted, jumping out of his seat. The Warden was a heavyset guy, wearing the standard guard's uniform with the only differences being his uniform was slightly darker in color than all the others and sleeveless. He also wore a black cap, with a golden emblem on the front that had the Sector Security logo engraved into it.

"Oh, he won't be joining us." Jehan smiled, holding up the Dimensional Prison card.

"What do you want here?" The Warden growled.

"We just want to have a little chit-chat with the prisoners." Alyssa smiled, stepping in front of Jehan.

"I don't have any idea why, but I was told to be on guard should any members of the Arcadia Movement show up here. As such, it's my duty to put you in your place." The Warden growled, activating his duel disk.

"A duel, is it? Alright." Alyssa said, still smiling as she activated her own duel disk.

"Whatever you're up to, I'll stop it!" The Warden roared.

"Try it." Alyssa smirked.

"Duel!"

**[Alyssa: 8000 / Warden: 8000]**

"Ladies first," Alyssa started. "I summon Gishki Chain!"

A strange green sea serpent burst onto the field. It had two arms, wielding a spear in on and a strange mirror in the other. [ATK: 1800] Gishki Chain shot its spear down into the ground and yanked it back up, pulling three cards up with it.

"When Gishki Chain is normal summoned, I can look at the top three cards of my deck to reveal and add one Ritual monster or Ritual spell card from among them to my hand. Then I return the other two to the deck." Alyssa explained. She added Gishki Aquamirror to her hand, flipping it around so the Warden could see.

"Last report I read about you said you were using an Ice Barrier deck…" The Warden grumbled.

"I set two cards face-down and end my turn." Alyssa said dismissively, ignoring the Warden's comment.

"Draw. Since I control no monsters, I can special summon this card from my hand. Come out, Evil Hero Infernal Prodigy!" The Warden shouted, slamming the card down onto his duel disk.

A dark blaze erupted from the ground, Infernal Prodigy stepping out of it. The creature that was now cackling madly had a tail and a small set of wings. The creature's helmet was odd, having two long protrusions on the side. [ATK: 300]

"I tribute Infernal Prodigy to summon Evil Hero Malicious Edge!" The Warden snarled.

Another dark flare erupted from the ground and enveloped Infernal Prodigy, a dark blue fiend with claws protruding out of its knuckles taking the place of the weaker Hero. It had spikes on its shoulders, on its knees, on its hips, down its legs and down its arm. The creature threw back its head and let out a howling laugh. [ATK: 2600]

"Now, this is what my deck is all about." The Warden smirked. "I activate Dark Fusion, fusing the Clayman and Sparkman in my hand to call forth… Evil Hero Lightning Golem!" The Warden roared.

A black portal appeared behind the Warden, two cards disappearing into it. From that same portal emerged a huge, hulking golem. It was muscular, with blades down its arms and two lightning bolt shaped flaps on the side of its helmet. The Evil Hero pounded its fist with its hand, scattering sparks into the air. [ATK: 2400]

"So, these are the fabled Evil Heroes used by the head of the Facility… how interesting." Alyssa smirked.

"Regular heroes are too soft to get the job done sometimes. The power of the Evil Heroes can change the world. This is that power! Lightning Golem's monster effect! Once per turn he can destroy one monster on the field!" The Warden shouted. "Go, Lightning Golem! Get rid of Gishki Chain!"

The Golem formed an orb of electricity in its hand, hurling it forward, electrocuting and destroying Gishki Chain, removing Alyssa's only monster.

"Malicious Edge, direct attack!" The Warden ordered.

Malicious Edge flew forward, stopping in front of the blue-haired duelist and slashing her across the chest with his claws.

**[Alyssa: 5400 / Warden: 8000]**

"Go, Lightning Golem! Hell Lightning!" The Warden continued.

Lightning Golem raised a single finger high into the air. Seconds later, a bolt of red lightning fell from above, striking the blue-haired girl and bringing her to her knees.

**[Alyssa: 3000 / Warden: 8000]**

"He's taken one turn and you're down 5000 life points! Come on Alyssa, what are you doing?" Jehan jeered.

"Quiet!" Alyssa snapped as she shakily stood up.

"Maybe you should've stuck with that Ice Barrier deck," The Warden chuckled. "I end my turn. Since Infernal Prodigy was a tribute for the summon of an Evil Hero monster, I get to draw one card."

"Draw. I activate the Ritual spell card Gishki Aquamirror. I send Vision Gishki to the graveyard from my hand as a tribute. This lets me Ritual summon Evigishki Levianima!" Alyssa announced.

A strange blue mirror with a gold trim appeared. The image of the tribute monster appeared it briefly, before a tower of water erupted in front of it. A purple winged humanoid sea serpent burst out of the liquid tower. It was dressed in ragged clothes, with grey hair on its head but oddly enough a red pony tail. The creature belted out a powerful roar as it swung its sword through the air. [ATK: 2800]

"That monster is level eight! Vision Gishki is level two, that's not a sufficient tribute!" The Warden protested.

"Among the Gishki there are a certain few who can be used as the entire tribute for a Ritual summon." Alyssa explained.

"What a bothersome ability…" The Warden grumbled, seeing his monsters were no longer the strongest things on the field.

"Moving on, I activate my set Aquamirror Meditation. By revealing a Ritual spell in my hand, I can add two Gishki monsters from my graveyard to my hand. So I'll take back Gishki Chain and Vision Gishki. Then…" Alyssa smirked as she slid another card into her duel disk, revealing the second Gishki Aquamirror in her hand.

"Another Aquamirror?" The Warden grunted.

"Mhmm. I send Vision Gishki to the graveyard to act as the entire tribute for this! Come forth, Evigishki Tetrogre!" Alyssa called.

Another mirror appeared, and this time a blue humanoid sea beast burst onto the field. This one had short red hair, and appeared to have been infused with energy from the Vylons as its armor shared the same color scheme. As its Evigishki comrade had done before it, it too let out a powerful roar. [ATK: 2600]

"I activate the effect of Evigishki Tetrogre. Once per turn, I can declare monster, spell, or trap and we each have to send one of the declared cards to the graveyard. I select monster. Of course, you can always discard one card to negate this effect." Alyssa explained.

"Heh, why would I want to negate that? It just gives me more targets for Dark Calling. So sure I'll send one to the graveyard." The Warden laughed, sending an Elemental Hero Burstinatrix from his deck to the graveyard. Alyssa smiled to herself as she slid Gishki Shadow into the graveyard.

"Now, since I haven't normal summoned yet I'll call Gishki Chain to the field once more." Alyssa continued.

Gishki Chain appeared once more, slamming its spear into the ground and pulling up three cards. Alyssa nodded slowly to herself. She grabbed one and turned it over to the Warden, who nodded seeing that it was a Ritual monster his opponent had retrieved this time. [ATK: 1800]

"Now Levianima, attack Malicious Edge!" Alyssa ordered. "When Levianima attacks, I can draw a card and reveal it. If it's a Gishki monster, I can look at one card in your hand." Alyssa explained. She picked up the top card of her deck and showed it to the Warden. It was Salvage, a spell card.

Levianima flapped its wings and dived forward. Malicious Edge changed into a battle stance, but it did little to stop Levianima's sword from cleaving it in half.

**[Alyssa: 3000 / Warden: 7800]**

"Tetrogre, you're up next!" Alyssa called.

Tetrogre roared and a whirlpool formed under Lightning Golem. Gravity pulled the heavier creature down into it, the Evil Hero reaching up desperately for salvation before it disappeared beneath the waters.

**[Alyssa: 3000 / Warden: 7600]**

"Gishki Chain, attack him directly!" Alyssa continued.

The sea serpent launched its spear forward, striking the Warden in the chest and bringing the older man down to one knee.

**[Alyssa: 3000 / Warden: 5800]**

"You're up." Alyssa smirked.

"Nicely done." Jehan said, visibly impressed with how Alyssa was handling her new deck.

"Was there any doubt I wouldn't do well with this deck? It was hand-picked for me after all." Alyssa smiled.

"You think you're so great just cause of one decent turn?" The Warden growled as he stood up, drawing from his deck.

"She cleared your field!" Jehan laughed.

"I activate Dark Hole, so everything you've worked so hard for has just been rendered useless." The Warden laughed.

Alyssa's smile faded as a swirling black vortex began to form on the field. One by one her monsters were pulled into it, meeting their end as they disappeared. If the Warden could pull off another explosive turn like before, this might be the end for her.

"I summon Elemental Hero Stratos, and use his effect to get a Hero monster from my deck to my hand." The Warden explained as he added Evil Hero Infernal Gainer to his hand.

A muscular hero with dark blue armor and skin that was slightly lighter than its armor in color appeared in a gust of wind. Stratos had a blue visor covering its eyes, and a strange grey device on its back with two propellers that spun fast enough keep the hero afloat. [ATK: 1800]

"Stratos, attack her directly!" The Warden ordered.

Stratos's propellers began to spin faster, sending blades of air at the Gishki duelist and pushing her back.

**[Alyssa: 1200 / Warden: 5800]**

"I got nothing else to do." The Warden sighed, ending his turn.

"Draw," Alyssa began. "How wonderful. I activate Monster Reborn to bring back Evigishki Levianima."

Levianima burst out of the ground, proudly roaring again as it flapped its large wings. [ATK: 2800]

"Him again?" The Warden groaned.

"Levianima, attack Stratos!" Alyssa commanded. She picked up the top card of her deck and smirked as she revealed it. It was Gishki Ariel. Alyssa selected a card and the Warden reluctantly revealed it as Dark Factory of Mass Production.

"So if he gets Dark Fusion or Dark Calling next turn he can bring out something powerful…" Jehan muttered.

Levianima sliced Stratos across the chest, the Elemental Hero kneeling over in pain before its hologram shattered.

**[Alyssa: 1200 / Warden: 4800]**

"Main Phase 2, I set one monster face-down and end my turn." Alyssa concluded.

"My turn then." The Warden started. "Hehehe… now you're in for it. I activate Dark Calling! I can remove monsters from my graveyard that are listed on an monster that could normally only be summoned with Dark Fusion and special summon it! So I remove Lightning Golem and Malicious Edge to call forth Evil Hero Malicious Fiend!" The Warden laughed.

Another swirling black vortex appeared, the images of Lightning Golem and Malicious Fiend appearing in front of it and being drawn into it. Out of the vortex a new creature appeared. It was an upgraded Malicious Edge, with longer claws, large wings and hair that contained actual spikes. [ATK: 3500]

"Then, I summon Evil Hero Infernal Gainer!" The Warden continued.

A new hero in skeletal black armor appeared on the field. The body below the army was a dark red and resembled muscle tissue. It had several curved spikes on its back and it flexed its clawed hand, smirking at his opponent. [ATK: 1600]

"He won't be sticking around for long though. By removing Infernal Gainer, one Fiend-type monster can attack twice each turn. But the best part is that in two turns, he comes back." The Warden smirked. "Infernal Gainer, give your power to Malicious Fiend!" The Warden roared.

Infernal Gainer laughed as its body became a red aura which moved to cover Malicious Fiend. The fusion monster gave a pleasured sigh as the red energy seeped into its body, empowering it.

"Malicious Edge, cut down both of her monsters!" The Warden announced, howling with laughter.

The Evil Hero flew across the field, easily dispatching both of the monsters. It cut through the set card, the form of a blue-haired girl a black cloak appeared out of the reversed card before shattering. Cackling with laughter, Malicious Edge turned on Levianima. The sea beast raised its sword and lunged at the fiend, but Malicious Edge sliced right through the Ritual monster with its sharp claws.

**[Alyssa: 500 / Warden: 4800]**

"Well, Alyssa, looks like this is your last chance to turn it around." Jehan grinned, putting his hands behind his head.

"Don't worry, I've got this. Are you done?" Alyssa asked. "Oh, and since you flipped Gishki Ariel I can add one Gishki monster from my deck to my hand. I think I'll get another Gishki Chain."

"Go for it. You may have beat Malicious Edge and Lightning Golem, but now that they've combined into Malicious Fiend I doubt you have a monster strong enough in your deck to beat him." The Warden chuckled.

"We shall see, draw. First, I activate Salvage to add two Water monsters with 1500 or less defense from my graveyard to my hand. I'll get back Vision Gishki and Gishki Shadow." Alyssa began. "Then, I'll activate Preparation of Rites to add one level seven or lower Ritual monster and a Ritual spell card to my hand."

"More Rituals? Sacrificing for power can't compare to combining two powers together." The Warden sighed, shaking his head in disapproval.

"I activate the effect of the Gishki Aquamirror in my graveyard. By returning it to my deck, I can add one Gishki Ritual Monster from my graveyard to my hand." Alyssa continued, again ignoring the Warden's comment. She had gotten Mind Angus and another Aquamirror with Preparation of Rites and had now just gotten Tetrogre back to her hand.

"You keep getting Ritual monsters but you only have one Ritual spell. I fail to see the point." The Warden observed.

"I'll change that. By discarding Gishki Shadow, I can add one Gishki Ritual spell card to my hand. So I'll get back to the Aquamirror I just returned to the deck." Alyssa smiled.

"Oh my…" Jehan laughed. The red-haired duelist couldn't deny how impressed he was with how well the blue-haired duelist was doing with a deck she'd only started using recently.

"I'll activate my first Aquamirror, sending the level six Mind Angus to the graveyard to summon Tetrogre again." Alyssa continued.

The gold-rimmed mirror appeared yet again, Mind Angus disappearing into it to call the golden armored sea beast that was Evigishki Tetrogre back to the field. [ATK: 2600]

"That's not enough." The Warden chuckled, wagging his finger. "You'll have to do much better than that."

"I still have another Aquamirror, don't I? I'll activate it and use Vision Gishki as the entire tribute. Now I can bring out a new Evigishki. Evigishki Soul Ogre!" Alyssa shouted.

A new bipedal sea beast burst out of the mirror. This one was a dark green color and had a golden stomach and a few golden bands on its limbs. Soul Ogre snarled at Malicious Fiend, ready to end this duel. [ATK: 2800]

"Still not enough." The Warden yawned.

"Remember the Gishki Chain still in my hand?" Alyssa asked.

"Yeah? What of it? It's your last card. Gonna normal summon it and look at your deck again? Doesn't matter, no Ritual spell or Ritual monster can help you out of this mess." The Warden said, narrowing his eyes.

"Soul Ogre has a special ability. Once per turn, by discarding one Gishki monster, I can target one face-up card you control and shuffle it back into the deck." Alyssa said, smiling as she slotted Gishki Chain into her graveyard.

"No!" The Warden shouted.

Soul Ogre slammed its hands onto the ground, a gigantic tidal wave launching forward. It consumed Malicious Fiend and the Warden, and when the holographic water faded only the Warden remained.

"Damn it! No!" The Warden shouted.

"Tetrogre, direct attack!" Alyssa started.

Tetrogre sent a wave of crystal blue water towards the Warden, smashing him up against the wall.

**[Alyssa: 500 / Warden: 2200]**

"Now… Soul Ogre. You know what to do." Alyssa smirked.

Soul Ogre pulsed with energy, the Warden cursing loudly as he felt it. Soul Ogre lumbered forward and delivered a decisive, final punch to the Warden.

**[Alyssa: 500 / Warden: 0]**

The Warden groaned loudly and slid down to the ground. He held his chest in pain, having taken several attacks from the Gishki duelist's powers. Jehan laughed and shook his head, walking towards the fallen man and lifting his head so the Evil Hero duelist could look at Alyssa.

"We just think that your prisoners could use a little fresh air is all. This jail seems so stuff." Alyssa smirked.

"N-No… y-you can't release… the prisoners…" The Warden stammered.

"I think you'll see things our way soon enough." Alyssa giggled, sliding a Mind Control card out of her pocket. She held it up and the Warden looked on in horror, but in moments his eyes glazed over and the red-haired duelist released his grip on him. The Warden got to his feet and looked at Alyssa, waiting for instructions.

_A little while later…_

The inmates murmured among themselves as they stood on the ground floor of the Facility. Never before had there been a gathering of this magnitude. The Warden had never ordered anything like this. More or less all of the guards were standing on elevated platforms above the inmates, watching them like hawks from above.

The shaggy black-haired teenager known as Rory was among those in the crowd. His friends around him were talking about possibly making a run for it if they could get enough people on board, since it looked like every prisoner was out here. The crowd became silent as a blue-haired woman stood a platform to address the crowd, a few inmates hooting as she did. The Warden handed her a small microphone and returned to his position on the sidelines.

"I'd like you all to see the birth of a new world. You can't do that trapped behind these walls." Alyssa said.

"Are we all being pardoned or something?" Rory asked. The inmate next to him, Carlson, just shrugged, not knowing himself.

"I'd like you all to look closely at this card." Alyssa said, holding a trap card out towards the crowd.

"That's… Mass Hypnosis?" Another inmate named Fai asked.

"No! Don't look!" A guard shouted from above, realizing what was about to happen.

"Yes, it is." Alyssa smirked. The guards warning what come seconds too late. The card glowed and the crowd let out a collective gasp. It became so silent one could hear a pin drop. "Now… guards, throw open the gates! Everyone else, retrieve your decks and take to the city!" Alyssa declared.

The crowd let a tremendous cheer as everyone went to carry out their tasks. Alyssa stumbled and gripped her head, Jehan moving to catch her before she fell. Her breathing was labored, the effect of using Mass Hypnosis putting a huge strain on her body. Jehan cursed under his breath and picked the girl up. He had to get out of here before the streets were clogged by the released prisoners.

The guards standing watch where the decks were kept were easily overrun by the surge of inmates. Decks were passed out and with a collective cheer the prisoners began to run towards the now open gates.

_Outside…_

"Hey… Dave? Why are the gates open?" A Security officer asked his partner.

"I got no idea Morgan, never seen anything like this." Dave admitted.

The two looked inside the prison courtyard and saw nothing. Then up at the wall surrounding the prison where a handful of guards stood, none of them doing anything to close the gates. Just as the officer was going to call up to them, prisoners began to storm out of the main doors.

"Oh… oh no!" Dave cursed. "What are you guys doing? Shut the damn gates!" Dave shouted up at the guards who remained motionless.

When they got no response, Dave backed up to stand with Morgan. Against the rush of inmates, they knew they had to try and do something. Dave rushed over to his Duel Runner and picked up the radio, quickly barking something into it before returning to his partner.

Most of the inmates rushed past them, a group of four approached Dave and a group of three, of which Rory was a part of, engaged Morgan. Cursing under their breath, Dave and Morgan activated their duel disks.

"Duel!"

**[Carlson: 8000 / Fai: 8000 / Rory: 8000 / Morgan: 8000]**

"Dang it… just remember your training, Morgan." The officer whispered to himself as he drew his opening hand. But deep down the officer knew that in a three-on-one scenario, there wasn't that much his training could do for him.

"I send three cards from my hand to the graveyard, two that are level eight and one that's level seven. This lets me summon Montage Dragon!" Morgan announced. "Then, Montage Dragon gains power equal to the sent cards times three hundred!"

The three-headed purple dragon rose up, the three heads roaring in unison as its power rose. [ATK: 6900]

"Then I activate Sonic Buster! My opponents take damage equal to my monsters attack points!" The officer shouted.

"The thing you haven't gotten through yer head is that this ain't a tag duel. This is a battle royale. You don't damage all of us, you damage one of us." Carlson laughed.

"Damn… alright, then you take the damage!" Morgan said loudly, pointing towards Carlson.

Montage Dragon let out another loud roar, the power behind it knocking Carlson back.

**[Carlson: 4550 / Fai: 8000 / Rory: 8000 / Morgan: 8000]**

"I set one card face-down and end my turn." Morgan finished.

"I'll be goin' next." Carlson began. "I activate Card Destruction!"

Next to him, Fai and Rory began to laugh. The three duelists who still had cards left in their hands discarded them and drew again.

"Shouldn't only one other person discard?" Morgan asked.

"Read the card genius, it says each player, not just you and yer opponent. So we all discard. Now, time fer the fun part" Carlson laughed as he slotted his entire hand into his graveyard.

A tall muscular black demon in golden armor wielding a large battle-axe burst out on the field, slicing its axe through the air as lightning struck the ground behind it. [ATK: 2300]

"Since Goldd, Wu-Lord of Dark World was discarded, I get ta special summon him from the grave. But that ain't all; I discarded Gren, Tactician of Dark World too. Know what that means pal? I can destroy yer set card." Carlson laughed.

A bolt of lightning struck and destroyed the officer's set card, revealing it to be Call of the Haunted.

"Next up, since I discarded Grapha, Dragon Lord of Dark World, I can destroy one card you control." Carlson smirked.

A bolt of black lightning struck Montage Dragon, emptying the officer's field of any form of protection.

"Hey, Carlson! I discarded two Fabled Ganashia, so why don't we welcome them back as well?" Fai laughed.

Two light purple bipedal elephants appeared on the field, standing side by side. Each had a dark purple best and two long, curved white tusks next to their trunk. [ATK: 1600 - 1800]

"Since Ganashia was discarded, I can special summon it from the graveyard. When he's summoned like this, he gains 200 attack points but he's removed from play if he leaves the field." Fai explained.

"Ya ain't a got a chance against us, Security scum. Besides, I still got more ta do. I return Goldd to my hand to special summon Grapha from my graveyard!" Carlson shouted.

Black lightning struck the ground and with a deafening roar the Dragon Lord of Dark World came to the field. It was a huge, graphite colored beast with gigantic wings and an overall intimidating appearance. [ATK: 2700]

"Since none of us can attack on the first turn of a battle royale, I'll end my turn right there." Carlson finished, wearing a proud grin on his face.

"I'm up next," Fai began. "I summon The Fabled Cerburrel!"

A small three-headed dog that actually looked kind of cute appeared between the two Fabled Ganashia, barking loudly. [ATK: 300]

"Then, I tune my level two level four Fabled Ganashia to my level two Fabled Cerburrel!" Fai called as the three monsters rose up into the air. "Dancing on the border between light and darkness with a mind caught between insanity and reality! Rise up and take the world for your own! Synchro Summon! Exterminate, The Fabled Leviathan!"

A humanoid creature that was strongest of the Fableds descended onto the field. It wore red and gold armor in addition to a set of strangest goggles, blood red wings and flowing, bright red hair. It threw back its head and laughed madly, seeming to mock its opponent. [ATK: 3000]

"I set one card, and end my turn." Fai finished.

"Hey, you guys need any help?" Another escape prisoner called from the crowd that was still rushing out of the opened gates.

"Does it look like we need any help?" Fai called back.

"These guys ain't so tough if ya take 'em like this." Carlson laughed. The other prisoners who were passing by laughed at the comment, Morgan glancing around nervously as the prisoners started making their way towards the city.

"I'm up next." Rory started. "I summon Scrap Chimera, whose effect lets me special summon one Scrap Tuner monster from my graveyard! So come on back, Scrap Beast!"

A makeshift chimera that resembled a winged lion with a snake tail formed on the field. [ATK: 1700] It let out a mechanical roar, and beside it Scrap Beast rose up from the ground. [ATK: 1600]

"Now, I tune my level four Scrap Chimera to my level four Scrap Beast!" Rory announced with a huge grin on his face. "Among the rubble lies an untapped strength! Once discarded, rise again! Synchro Summon! Roar, Scrap Dragon!"

A purple dragon that wasn't much smaller than Grapha burst out of the Synchro gates. Steam shot out of various parts of the monster's body as it flapped its mechanical wings to stay afloat. [ATK: 2800]

"I'm done." Rory finished, still smiling.

"Come on… give me something…" Morgan whispered as he drew. His heart sank when he turned the card over. It was another Montage Dragon. He bit his lower lip and turned his head to his partner. "Hey Dave! Think you can lend me a hand here?" Morgan called.

But Dave was collapsed on the ground, the prisoners passing around him as they continued to rush towards the city. With a shaking breath, Morgan placed his hand over his deck as a symbol of surrender.

"We reject yer surrender." Carlson said aloud.

"…What?" Morgan whispered.

"Yeah, didn't you know? Your opponent can reject surrender and you have to keep playing." Rory explained.

"You think we'll let you off that easy just 'cause your losing?" Fai laughed.

"Well, since you ain't doing anything I guess its my turn again." Carlson grinned, drawing a card but not bothering to look at it. "Get 'em, Grapha!"

The Dragon Lord roared proudly, a few inmates actually stopping to marvel at the creature. Another bolt of black lightning shot down from above, striking the defenseless Sector Security officer.

**[Carlson: 4550 / Fai: 8000 / Rory: 8000 / Morgan: 5300]**

"Fai, yer up." Carlson finished.

"Go, Fabled Leviathan!" Fai shouted.

Leviathan held out a single finger, chuckling to himself as a ball of yellow light formed at the end. The ball expanded, and after a few moments the ball turned into a beam of yellow light which bowled Morgan over.

**[Carlson: 4550 / Fai: 8000 / Rory: 8000 / Morgan: 2300]**

"Take it home." Fai finished, looking towards Rory.

"Scrap Dragon, end this!" Rory shouted gleefully.

Scrap Dragon swooped down, ramming headfirst into the Security officer who was struggling to get up and sending him sprawling to the ground yet again.

**[Carlson: 4550 / Fai: 8000 / Rory: 8000 / Morgan: 0]**

"Alright, now that that pest is outta the way, to the city!" Carlson declared, pointing towards the city in question. Fai and Rory cheered and ran forward, leaping over the downed Security officer as they headed towards their destination.

_Back at the Arcadia Movement Headquarters…_

Michael sat with Mura, the two watching the inmates escape and rush into the city on the news. A helicopter had been dispatched almost immediately and the media was having a field day with this.

"I told you that you wouldn't want to miss this." Mura chuckled.

"Guess you were right… Security really won't have time to intervene." Michael said quietly.

_Neo Domino City…_

Jared, Demetri and Everest were riding through the city as planned. They were just a few blocks away from the Arcadia Movement HQ now. But they all came to a screeching halt as a group of inmates surged across the corner and started coming towards him.

"As if attacking our main office wasn't enough… so this is how they're going to get Sector Security to stay off their back." Everest growled.

"They really went this far?" Jared whispered.

The group looked on as the released prisoners flipped a park car, cheered, and then locked their sights on the trio that was watching them.

* * *

><p>So I finally got to show of Alyssa's deck. It's not really a big deal since she's only show up like, twice prior to this, I was just really satisfied with the duel for this chapter. I think I kept it decently interesting, so all I'm all I'm pretty happy with this chapter. Hopefully it made up for the uneventfulness of the last one. Also, I don't really like asking for this but I'd really like to know what you guys think so far, if you like the way things are going, ways I could improve my writing, etc. I won't pull a 'no new chapter until X amount of reviews', I'd just like to know is all. Even if you don't, I still hope you have a great day and I'll see you in probably another 3-5 days!<p> 


	20. Chapter 20: Dark Piercing Light

The three duelists were frozen like a deer caught in the headlights as they stared at the mob. It was only when one of the escaped inmates threw something which shattered onto the ground next to them did they regain their ability to move.

"Drive!" Everest shouted, turning his duel runner around and taking off around the nearest corner. Demetri and Jared quickly followed with the pounding of the mobs footsteps audible behind them.

"I can't believe they went so far…" Jared said quietly.

"Yeah, well they did." Everest said coldly. The trio of duelists continued to ride down the street, trying to find a path with no, or at the very least a very small amount of, inmates. Finally, after so time, they did. They turned down the street and set their sights on the skyscraper that housed the Arcadia Movements Headquarters while listening to the sounds of chaos and sirens behind them.

_At the Arcadia Movement Headquarters…_

"Time to go." Mura said, switching off the coverage of the mass break-out. The black-haired duelist rose from the couch and walked towards the elevator, beckoning for Michael to follow him. They were in a lounge-like area, which had various recreational activates available to anyone who had the free time to visit it. Today though, it was empty.

The former Genex duelist had had a terrible sleep, and had been up for quite some time now as Mura had come to get him early in the day to watch the news. He had changed into the garments provided to him, which he was pleased to see were not the standard uniform. His new clothes were similar to the ones he'd been wearing before, but they had the Arcadia Movement color scheme.

"Where are we off to?" Michael asked, raising himself from the couch and following Mura into the elevator.

"I want you to test out your new deck." Mura said.

"Wonderful." Michael said, staring down at his duel disk and the stack of unknown cards that were inserted into it.

The duo walked in comfortable silence as the elevator dropped them off at the ground floor. They moved into the training hall and found it just as packed as it had been last night, small pulses of energy being released every few moments. A girl with short grey hair in the standard Arcadia uniform immediately approached the duo.

"Mura you idiot, I've been waiting here for at least fifteen minutes." The girl growled.

"Calm down, Kana. We won't waste any more of your time then. Michael, this is who you'll be playing against to test your new deck." Mura said, motioning to Kana.

"I'll crush you like an ant." Kana said nonchalantly.

Michael remained silent and simply moved to take his place on the nearest available dueling field, Kana moving to stand opposite him.

"Duel!"

**[Michael: 8000 / Kana: 8000]**

"Draw! By discarding the level five Darklord Edeh Arae in my hand, I can special summon Dark Grepher!" Kana shouted as she slid the Darklord into her graveyard.

A corrupted version of Warrior Dai Grepher burst onto the field, cackling madly. It wore pitch-black armor and had white hair. The monster's red eyes lock onto Michael and a smile crossed the creature's lips. [ATK: 1700]

"Then, I summon Armageddon Knight!" Kana continued.

A new warrior appeared beside Grepher. This one wore a red scarf along with a set dark armor which had visible gashes on it. The warriors black hair fell behind its shoulder as it raised its sword in preparation of battle. [ATK: 1400]

"When Armageddon Knight is summoned, I can send one Dark monster from my deck to my graveyard. I think I'll send Darklord Superbia and end my turn there." Kana smirked.

"My turn then," Michael began. The brown-haired duelist looked down at his hand and frowned. "Allies of Justice?" He asked, turning his head to look at Mura.

"More or less, I'd say it's more of an anti-Light deck. That's why I thought I'd start you off against someone who uses a Dark deck." Mura explained.

"Well, that renders most of the Synchro monsters in this deck useless." Michael sighed. He'd come across Allies of Justice a few times, but he just never liked how they played. Relying on your opponent to have a specific type of deck just didn't fit him. He preferred being able to toolbox his way out of just about anything using his Genex cards.

"Oh, you don't need to worry about the Synchro monsters," Mura smiled. "I never gave them to you."

"…What?" Michael asked.

"Yeah, I never gave you an extra deck. I wanted to see how you do without it." Mura nodded.

"Are you sure that's the reason? It has nothing to do with you using an anti-Synchro deck?" Michael asked bluntly, causing Mura's eyes to widen.

"Hey! I'm waiting over here!" Kana shouted impatiently.

"Yeah, yeah. I activate Scroll of Bewitchment to change Dark Grepher's attribute to Light." Michael said, slightly amused at the idea of a Light-attribute Dark Grepher.

"It's not that, I just wanted to see how you do with a handicap." Mura said after a few moments.

"Whatever you say. Since you control two monsters, one of which is Light, I can special summon this monster from my hand." Michael announced, holding up Ally of Justice Cosmic Gateway.

Yellow energy began to seep out of the now Light Dark Grepher, being drawn into a strange portal. From the portal emerged a large machine that appeared capable of creating a portal itself. It was Ally of Justice Cosmic Gateway. [ATK: 2400]

"Then, I summon Ally of Justice Garadholg." Michael continued.

A cyborg monster in orange-and-white armor appeared next to Cosmic Gateway. The creature wielded two swords made of light blue energy and had that same energy flowing out of the back of its head, giving the illusion that it had hair. [ATK: 1600]

"Now, Garadholg! Attack Dark Grepher!" Michael commanded.

"But your monster is-" Kana started to protest.

"Garadholg gains 200 attack points when battling a Light monster, giving it 100 more points than your Dark Grepher." Mura chimed in.

"Exactly." Michael nodded.

Garadholg brought down one of its energy blades, Grepher blocking it with a sword of his own. Garadholg raised its other sword and the warrior's eye widened as the machine sliced sideways, cutting through the dark warrior.

**[Michael: 8000 / Kana: 7900]**

"Go, Cosmic Gateway!" Michael continued.

A gateway powered up, a strange portal forming inside it. Armageddon Knight found itself being pulled forward towards the gateway and slammed its sword into the ground in hopes of outlasting the gateways suction. But the monsters grip loosened after a few moments and the warrior was pulled into the portal, the sword it left behind shattering like glass.

**[Michael: 8000 / Kana: 6900]**

"I set one card face-down and end my turn there." Michael finished.

"Heh. Destroying my monsters may have seemed like a good idea, but in reality you just put yourself in a terrible position." Kana smirked as she drew a card. "I activate Foolish Burial to send another Armageddon Knight from my deck to the graveyard."

Michael watched as the grey-haired girl slid another card into her graveyard. As she did, a sickly dark glow surrounded her duel disk.

"What the…" Michael muttered, furrowing his brow.

"With five or more Dark monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon this card from my hand! Come forth, Dark Creator!" Kana shouted, slamming the card onto her duel disk.

From above descended a large black humanoid form with black-and-orange wings. It was the evil counterpart of The Creator. Michael frowned as he stared at this new creature, unaware of what abilities it possessed. [ATK: 2300]

"Now, for my winning combination! I activate the Dark Creator's effect! By removing from play one of the Dark monster in my graveyard, I can special summon a Dark monster from my graveyard! I'll remove one of the Armageddon Knights to special summon Darklord Superbia!" Kana declared gleefully.

The Dark Creator held both of his hands out and formed a sphere of pitch-black energy between them. The sphere rose into the air and changed into a new form. The new form resembled a black-and-silver vase with orange markings on it. The vase-like monster also has two clawed hands emerging from its sides and a set of light brown wings on its back. [ATK: 2900]

"Superbia's effect activates! When Superbia is special summoned from the graveyard, I can special summon one Fairy-type monster that isn't Darklord Superbia. Rise again, Darklord Edeh Arae!" Kana called.

A sphere of purple energy rose out from the top of Superbia. It rose higher into the air and transformed into the shape of the new Darklord. Edeh Arae was a black-and-silver armored demon, with wings the same color as the rest of its body and two yellow orbs imbedded in the gauntlets it wore. [ATK: 2300]

"It's not over yet! I activate Celestial Transformation to special summon Darklord Asmodeus from my hand, but his attack points are halved and he's destroyed during the End Phase!" Kana continued.

Asmodeus descended from above. This Darklord had dark purple and silver armor and very pale skin. The Darklord flapped its purple wings and crossed its arms over its chest, observing the monsters below it silently. [ATK: 3000 - 1500]

"Now… Superbia! Destroy Cosmic Gateway!" Kana shouted, pointing towards her monsters target.

Cosmic Gateway began to power up, but before it could create its portal Superbia shredded it to pieces with its claws.

**[Michael: 7500 / Kana: 6900]**

"Edeh Arae, destroy Garadholg!" Kana ordered with a huge smile on her face.

Edeh Arae swooped down from above, Garadholg trying to cut down the oncoming creature with its blades. But as one was about to strike the Darklord, Edeh Arae caught it and crushed it. Garadholg took a step back in shock and that was when Edeh Arae delivered the first and final blow to the Ally of Justice.

**[Michael: 6800 / Kana: 6900]**

"Dark Creator, Asmodeus! Attack him directly!" Kana continued.

The Dark Creator and Asmodeus pulsed with energy and Michael cursed under his breath, knowing what was coming. The Dark Creator threw a sphere of purple energy at Michael, which enveloped the Ally of Justice duelist and made him cry out in pain. When the energy dispersed, Michael fell to one knee and was panting heavily.

**[Michael: 4500 / Kana: 6900]**

He looked up to see Asmodeus hovering in front of him. The Darklord kneeled down and delivered an uppercut to the brown-haired duelist, spending him sprawling across the ground.

**[Michael: 3000 / Kana: 6900]**

"That's enough punishment for one turn." Kana smirked.

"As… Asmodeus is destroyed…" Michael reminded her as he got to his feet.

"I was waiting for that. Asmodeus's true strength lies in defeat. When he's destroyed, I can special summon one Asmo Token and one Deus Token. The Asmo Token can't be destroyed by card effects and the Deus Token can't be destroyed by battle." Kana smiled.

Asmodeus shattered, but in his place appeared two new monsters. They were mirror images of Asmodeus, the only difference being their colors. The Asmo Token was dark blue and the Deus Token was bright red. [ATK: 1800] [ATK: 1200]

"Draw…" Michael said quietly. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths, opening them with a renewed determination. "Now I'll show you what my deck is capable of. I activate Reasoning. You declare a level and I pick up cards from the top of my deck until I get a monster. If it can be normal summoned, and it isn't the same level as the level you declared, I special summon it and send the rest of the picked up cards to the graveyard. If it is the same level as the one you declared, that monster gets sent to the graveyard along with everything else." Michael explained.

"Oh uh… I guess… level four?" Kana shrugged, guessing level four would probably be the most common level in Michael's deck.

Michael nodded and picked up the top card of his deck: Mirror Force. He picked another one: Monster Reborn. Another one: Limiter Removal. He could hear Kana laughing to herself as some of his best cards were sent to the graveyard. He grit his teeth and drew again: Ally of Justice Unlimiter.

"Unlimiter is level two, so I can special summon him." Michael smirked.

A small black and blue spaceship with the letters 'AoJ' carved into its side appeared on the field, a soft hum coming from the machine. [ATK: 600]

"Now, I summon Ally of Justice Thousand Arms!" Michael continued.

A six-armed dark purple cyborg burst onto the field next to Unlimiter. Each of its hands held a different bladed weapon and the robot appeared to smirk at its numerous foes. [ATK: 1700]

"Pfft. It can't even beat my Deus Token since it can't be destroyed by battle." Kana laughed.

"Thousand Arms has a special ability. He can attack every Light monster you control once, but if he attacks a non-Light monster he's destroyed before damage calculation." Michael explained.

"That… that changes absolutely nothing." Kana laughed, shaking her head at how foolish her opponent was.

"I activate my face-down DNA Transplant to change the attribute of all monsters on the field to Light." Michael smirked. All the monsters on the field glowed with a bright golden aura, now being creatures of light.

"Still not strong enough." Kana yawned.

"I equip Thousand Arms with the equip spell Break Draw! For three turns, when the equipped monster destroys an opponent's monster by battle and sends it to the graveyard, I can draw one card." Michael began. "Now, to address your 'too weak' comments. I activate the effect of Unlimiter, tributing it to double Thousand Arms attack points until the end of my turn."

Unlimiter transformed its body, becoming pieces of armor which attached itself to Thousand Arm's body. The cyborg roared as its power increased to over 3000, slashing its multitude of bladed weaponry through the air. [ATK: 1700 - 3400]

"No way…" Kana breathed.

"Way. Now, Thousand Arms! Attack all of her monsters!" Michael roared.

Thousand Arms ran forward, setting its sight on Superbia as its first target. The vase-shaped Darklord swooped down from above, screeching loudly with its claws outstretched. Thousand Arms, still running, leapt into the air and brought a sword down on Superbia, slicing the Darklord in half. As the first monster fell, Michael drew.

**[Michael: 3000 / Kana: 6400]**

Thousand Arms turned to face the Dark Creator. The tall monster formed a sphere of purple energy which it hurled towards the Ally of Justice. Thousand Arms pulled back one of its many arms and threw a battle-axe forward. The axe sliced through the sphere and flew into the corrupted Creator, destroying the larger creature and allowing Michael to draw again.

**[Michael: 3000 / Kana: 5300]**

Edeh Arae swooped down from behind, but the lightning reflexes of the cyborg allowed it to counter this. Back flipping over the oncoming Darklord, Thousand Arms thrust a pike downwards and easily dispatched the second Darklord. Again, Michael drew.

**[Michael: 3000 / Kana: 4200]**

The Asmo Token floated above the Ally of Justice and fired a blast of purple energy towards the Machine-type monster. Thousand Arms shielded itself with its arms, waiting out the attack. When it finally subsided, Thousand Arms easily dispatched the Asmo Token with a well-tossed pike.

**[Michael: 3000 / Kana: 2600]**

Using its remaining weapons, Thousand Arms slashed the Deus Token who stood tall despite the attack.

**[Michael: 3000 / Kana: 400]**

"Now, I'll set three cards face-down and end my turn." Michael finished, satisfied with his work. The parts Unlimiter added to Thousand Arms began to smoke and break off from the Ally of Justice as the brown-haired duelist entered his End Phase.

"Draw!" Kana said. The grey-haired girl looked at her card and smiled. "I activate Soul Release! I'll remove the Dark Grepher, Armageddon Knight and Asmodeus from my graveyard and the Unlimiter and Cosmic Gateway from yours." Kana said with a smirk.

"Why would she… wait… the only monsters left in your graveyard… Superbia, Edeh Arae and The Dark Creator… all Dark monsters." Michael said, recalling a monster that could be summoned with three Dark-attribute monsters in the graveyard.

"Yep! With exactly three Dark monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon this card from my hand! Come forth, Dark Armed Dragon!" Kana called.

A pillar of black energy rose up from the ground and from it emerged pitch-black, corrupted version of Armed Dragon LV 7. The black-and-silver beast roared loudly, its spiked tail slamming onto the ground as it did so. [ATK: 2800]

"Now, Dark Armed Dragon's monster effect! I remove from play one Dark monster to destroy one card you control. So I'll remove the Dark Creator to destroy Ally of Justice Thousand Arms!" Kana declared.

A sphere of black energy formed in front of Dark Armed Dragon's mouth. With a roar, the sphere was sent hurdling into the Ally of Justice who was subsequently destroyed.

"I activate my set Crevice into the Different Dimension! I can declare one attribute and remove two monsters with the declared attribute from either graveyard! I'll declare Dark and remove Edeh Arae and Superbia!" Michael countered. He'd set that card to make sure Superbia couldn't come back and bring Edeh Arae with it, but this worked out well enough.

"That won't stop me! Dark Armed Dragon, attack him directly!" Kana roared.

The dragon obeyed, pulsing with energy as it released a sea of black flames from its mouth. Michael shielded his face, but the dragon's flames were powerful. Just as he thought he might pass out from the heat, the flames subsided allowing Michael to recover his breath. He stared at his scorched clothing and shook his head in disapproval.

**[Michael: 200 / Kana: 400]**

"Now, Deus Token! Finish him!" Kana ordered, pointing towards her weakened foe.

"I activate Enemy Controller… to switch the Deus Token to defense mode…" Michael called weakly. He'd only taken three hits from this girl, but he was feeling unbelievably fatigued.

"Why didn't you use it to stop Dark Armed Dragon's attack?" demanded Kana.

"Would it really make a difference? If I don't draw a monster, the end result is the same." Michael shrugged.

"I suppose, but the Deus Token is a lot easier to overcome than Dark Armed Dragon. Dark Armed is significantly stronger than any monster you can normal summon, and you already lost your Monster Reborn." Kana huffed.

"If I draw a monster strong enough to beat the Deus Token, it can beat Dark Armed." Michael explained.

"Huh? Just… just go." Kana said with a disgusted tone in her voice.

"Draw!" Michael declared. He turned over his card and smiled. "Come on out, Ally of Justice Garadholg!"

The orange-and-white mechanical warrior appeared again, slashing its twin blades through the air. [ATK: 1600]

"How can THAT beat Dark Armed?" Kana challenged.

"All I have to do is equip him with the Metalmorph I set." Michael smirked.

Garadholg's armor glowed, becoming sleeker and shinier. The Ally of Justice smirked, raising one sword high into the air as it felt the additional strength Metalmorph granted it flowing through its body. [ATK: 1600 - 1900]

"When Garadholg battles a Light monster, his attack increases by 200, so if he attacked Dark Armed he would have a strength of 2100…" Kana mumbled to herself.

"You're probably still wondering how this guy is supposed to get over Dark Armed Dragon. Well, when a monster with Metalmorph attacks, it gains attack points equal to half the attack of its target." Michael smirked.

"So if he attacks he'll have a strength of 3500..." Kana whispered.

"You got it! Now, Garadholg! Destroy Dark Armed Dragon and wipe out the rest of her life points!" Michael shouted.

Garadholg pulsed with energy as it raised its sword, drawing more energy from the Light-attribute Dark Armed Dragon. With a fierce cry, Garadholg slammed his sword into the ground. A trail of light energy ran across the ground and struck Dark Armed. The giant dragon howled in pain, its body seeming to disintegrate for a few moments before exploding, sending Kana flying backwards.

**[Michael: 200 / Kana: 0]**

"Impressive! You wielded that deck new very nicely. You didn't even need any of the Synchro monsters." Mura said, clapping as he walked towards Michael.

"D-Damn you…" Kana said, cursing as she stood up. Her legs gave out for a brief moment, but she caught herself before falling to the ground again. The grey-haired girl left immediately to spare herself any more potential damage to her pride.

"Anyone can duel well with a decent deck." Michael shrugged.

"Not just that. You managed to infuse enough energy into Garadholg to bring it over. You usually only see that with high-leveled, high-powered, ace monster type cards. A powerful monster usually raises the person's spirits, so they usually have an easier time bringing it over." Mura explained.

Michael just nodded silently. Mura held a small stack of cards out to him and Michael smiled, realizing he'd just earned his extra deck. Slotting the cards into his duel disk, he wondered how much better he could do with this deck now. A phone began to go off and the Ally of Justice duelist turned to Mura, where the sound seemed to be coming from.

"Hey, what's up? …They're trying to what? Well, we're training now. Get Alyssa or someone to go deal with it, they should be back by now… Oh, they've already started? Well what about Cain? …He's busy? He said he was BUSY? He has done borderline nothing to contribute to this group. When we were taking on all those Security, he barely did anything! I took down easily twice as many as he did with half as much effort! He just complained and always asked me if 'I could take this one'. He's too used to his kingly life-style to play on a team like ours!" Mura exploded, Michael being surprised as he had never heard Mura raise his voice prior to this.

"…You know what? Fine, we'll go. Oh? Now you'll find someone else? Too bad, I'm already on my way." Mura spat, slamming his phone shut and muttering something Michael couldn't quite make out.

"What's going on?" Michael asked, being reasonably interested in what had gotten Mura so riled up.

"Some kids we took on are trying to escape. Everyone else is apparently too busy doing nothing to stop 'em, so it looks like we're the ones who have to go deal with this." Mura sighed, towards the training facility doors and throwing them open.

The view outside was much different than it had been when they had gone in. Thick pillars of smoke rose from around the buildings, and the sounds of screaming and sirens were constant. Michael glanced at Mura and saw the Meklord duelist's face fall, but quickly recover.

"So is really the right way to make a new world?" Michael asked quietly.

"…Shut up." Mura grumbled. Still under the effects of Brain Control, Michael had no choice but to remain silent. The Ally duelist hung his head, realizing he'd just lost a chance to ask if the duelists who were trying to escape were his captured friends.

_Arcadia Movement Headquarters: 18__th__ Floor…_

THWACK! THWACK! THWACK!

With a final, thunderous crash the door fell over and Tasha raised her fist triumph, her pride numbing the horrific pain that was now pulsing throughout her left arm. She was actually the most able-bodied member of the group at this point, not having been injured by a Psychic duelist, so she had taken it upon herself to lead the escape effort.

"Well, where do we go now?" Travis asked.

"Lobby, and then we make a mad dash for the exit." Tasha suggested, looking to her left, then right. The hallway was absolutely empty. No one had come to check up on all the noise Tasha was making.

"I still don't see why exactly the Arcadia Movement abducted us..." Travis sighed.

"Probably to get to Michael. But it won't matter; he probably reported that we were missing and someone is on their way to come find us right now. They won't get away with this. " Tasha said. "…Hey, Kali? What are you looking at out there?" The Watt duelist had been looking out the window while Tasha had been ramming her shoulder into the door and it only now occurred to her to ask what was happening out there.

"…I don't think anyway has the time to come find us." Kali said sadly, pointing outside. Tasha and Tarvis moved to the window and frowned, seeing the pillars of black smoke rising up from the city.

"What the hell is going on out there?" Travis asked.

"That's all the more reason for us to get out of here and find out." Tasha said. Travis and Kali nodded and the three moved into the hallway. They double-checked to make sure the coast was clear and then ran towards the elevator.

"Going somewhere?"

The trio immediately froze, Tasha being the first to recover and spin around. A man with medium length copper-colored hair in the standard Arcadia Movement uniform stood behind them. The man had a smile on his face as he pushed a set of rectangular glasses up his nose.

_How did he get behind us? We checked- we double-checked that the coast was clear! I didn't hear a sound!_ Tasha thought. Tasha raised and activated her duel disk, which thankfully hadn't been confiscated, and glared daggers at the smiling man.

_Neo Domino City…_

"Here we are." Everest said as they pulled up alongside the wall surrounding the property that belonged to Arcadia. Surprisingly, none of the escapees seemed to be even attempting to come this way.

"So do we just charge in, guns blazing?" Demetri asked.

"Sadly, that's the best course of action. If we take it slow, we're more likely to be caught and… dealt with." Jared said, his tone lowering as he finished his sentence.

"The fact none of those inmates are coming over this way all but confirms that the Arcadia Movement has to be behind this… damn it, let's just hurry up! The sooner we put this guy away the sooner we can undo his spell thing and start rounding up those inmates!" Everest roared.

Jared nodded and dismounted, the other two doing the same. Jared checked his watch, confirming that it was about this time that anyone acting as doorman would be switching. He looked back and nodded at Everest and Demetri and took off running.

_Hang on, Michael. We'll be there soon._

* * *

><p>What made this take so long was the duel. Originally was the handicap was 'No DNA Surgery'. After trying for around four days, I found that the duel was almost impossible to win at that point. Really, Allies of Justice against Darks just doesn't work. So I changed it so the handicap was 'No Synchros'. Duel was much easier to write after that. I also had a lot of fun with it after I changed the handicap, and I think it came out pretty well. I won't give an expected date for the next update since it didn't happen last time I did it. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading and I'll see you all next time!<p> 


	21. Chapter 21: Brain Hazard

"How did you get behind us?" Tasha demanded.

"I'd heard there were some vermin scurrying around that no one else could be bothered to deal with, so I decided to act as pest control." The man replied.

"That didn't answer my question at all." Tasha growled.

"Oh, you're more interested in the how than the why. Well, with my abilities it was child's play." The man replied, holding up a copy of Emergency Teleport.

"So, you're acting as 'pest control'?" Tasha asked.

"I do believe I just said that, yes."

"Well… if I defeat you in a duel, will you let us go?" Tasha asked.

"Now why in the world would I do something like that?" The copper haired man chuckled.

"Any honorable duelist would agree to a proposal like that." Tasha countered.

"What makes you think I care about honor? Honestly, I'm surprised I haven't sent you into the void already." The glasses wearing man laughed.

"The void?" Travis asked.

"I don't know if it really is a void or if it's a field of flowers, but that's what we call it when we… 'remove' people using cards like Dimensional Prison and Dark Core. We don't know where those people go and we have no desire to find out." The copper-haired man explained while shrugging his shoulders.

"Well… you wouldn't have anything to lose by dueling me. It could at least kill some time for you." Tasha offered, desperate to find a way to stall this guy while she thought of a plan.

"Hmm… I have been rather bored, and everyone else has been occupied recently. I can still just get rid of you after the duel anyway. Very well, I shall indulge you in your final request for a duel." The copper-haired man said, activating his duel disk. "My name is Shawn Kujima. You need not bother telling me your name Tasha, I already know it."

"…How?" Tasha asked, lowering her duel disk carrying arm slightly.

"Do not underestimate my power; I will caution you against that right now." Shawn smirked, adjusting his glasses slightly.

"Uh… let's just duel already." Tasha grumbled, raising her arm again.

"Very well."

"Duel!"

**[Tasha: 8000 / Shawn: 8000]**

"I'll start things off!" Tasha growled, looking through her opening hand. "I set one monster face-down, and two cards face-down and pass it off to you." Tasha finished.

"Draw." Shawn paused for a few moments and stared at Tasha's three reversed cards, then at the girl herself. A small smirk crossed his face as he slid a card onto his duel disk. "I summon Serene Psychic Witch." Shawn stated.

A woman wearing white headphones with pink hair and a pink outfit appeared in front of the copper-haired man. The woman held a strange pinkish device in both of her hands that were connected to each other by a thin pink wire. [ATK: 1400]

"Serene Psychic Witch attacks your set Gusto Gulldo." Shawn ordered.

Her set card exploded, revealing a small teal bird wearing a brown helmet. The bird flapped weakly, and then faded from sight.

"When Gusto Gulldo was sent from the field to the graveyard, I can special summon a level two or lower Gusto monster from my deck. I'll summon Gusto Egul in defense position." Tasha explained.

A small hunter green bird appeared in Gulldo's place, folding its wings over its face and turning blue. [DEF: 400]

"How did you know my set card was Gulldo?" Tasha asked.

"Call it a lucky guess." Shawn chuckled. "I set one card face-down and end my turn."

_Wait… he uses Psychic monsters, and he's with the Arcadia Movement… what if he has some actual Psychic abilities? _Tasha wondered. She saw Shawn smirk slightly and grimaced, thinking that just might have been the case. But she had to continue anyway.

"I summon Musto, Oracle of Gusto!" Tasha declared.

A small breeze blew through the hallway and the green-robed Musto silently appeared. Musto held a wooden staff with a green jewel on the top, surrounded by leaves. The man had short green hair and a matching beard, which framed his stern face nicely. [ATK: 1800]

"Musto, attack Serene Psychic Witch!" Tasha ordered.

Musto raised his hand and held the palm towards the Psychic monster. Instantly, a powerful blast of wind struck the pink witch and sent her flying all the way into the wall at the end of the hallway, where her hologram exploded.

**[Tasha: 8000 / Shawn: 7600]**

"Hmph, so the first blood went to you. It doesn't matter. When Serene Psychic Witch is destroyed, I can remove one Psychic-type monster with 2000 or less attack points from my deck, and then special summon it during my Standby Phase." Shawn explained, smiling slightly.

"I end my turn." Tasha finished.

"Draw. Now, during my Standby Phase, I can special summon the removed Silent Psychic Wizard."

A black portal formed in front of Shawn, and from it emerged Silent Psychic Wizard. The wizard had a large, light blue triangular helmet with his chest and arms being the same color. Strange green markings ran along the wizard's body, and it used both of its hands to hold a strange staff-like weapon. [ATK: 1900]

"But don't concern yourself with him, since I'm going to tribute him to summon Overdrive Teleporter." Shawn continued.

Silent Psychic Wizard was replaced by a lightly taller human. This one had red hair that was almost purple, and had a set of white-and-gold headphones on its ears that held a green visor over the Psychic's eyes. It wore a white cloak, with odd golden marks running along it. [ATK: 2100]

"Now, this is the fun part. By paying 2000 life points, I can special summon two level three Psychic monsters from my deck. The catch is that this effect can only be used once while he's face-up on the field, and that he can't be special summoned." Shawn explained as a red aura surrounded him.

**[Tasha: 8000 / Shawn: 5600]**

"Come forth, Psychic Commander! Hushed Psychic Cleric!"

Overdrive Teleporter raised both of its arms and a set of green portals appeared on either side of him. From the first emerged a soldier in pale green clothes with a black visor over its four eyes who piloted a floating tank. [ATK: 1400] From the other emerged Hushed Psychic Cleric. The man had very short grey hair, and a matching beard. The man's eyes were covered by a strange white device with golden markings on it, and its robe was almost identical to the one worn by Overdrive Teleporter. [ATK: 0]

"Now, Hushed Psychic Cleric's effect. By sending one card from my hand to the graveyard, I can remove one Psychic-type monster in my graveyard from play. Then, when Hushed Psychic Cleric is sent to the graveyard I can special summon a monster removed by this effect." Shawn explained. The copper-haired man sent a card from his hand to the graveyard, then immediately removed that same card from play.

"If he destroys Egul, she can get Winda, who can get Gulldo. She has three copies of each in her deck, so she can protect herself from up to eight attacks with that loop, and then one additional from whatever one is destroyed last." Travis noted as he saw Shawn's monster count rising.

"What if she runs out of recruiters?" Kali asked.

"Heh, you don't know how the Gusto play do you? Most of their card effects involve refilling your deck with cards from your graveyard. Heck, she could've put Gulldo back into the deck with Musto if she'd felt like it." Travis chuckled. Kali merely nodded in response.

"Now, I tune my level three Hushed Psychic Cleric to my level three Psychic Commander!" Shawn called as the two monsters rose into the air. "The discord of frenzied thoughts shall give you life! Feed on them and grow! Synchro Summon! Consume, Psychic Nightmare!"

Nightmare was the perfect word to describe the new monster. It had a purple body, with a set of large wings behind its spiked shoulders. It flexed its clawed hands while quietly laughing to itself, its wild green hair releasing a few strange sparks. [ATK: 2400]

"Now, since Hushed Psychic Cleric has left the field I can special summon the Master Gig I removed." The glasses wearer smirked.

A black portal formed to the left of Overdrive Teleporter. From it came an odd looking, egg-shaped creature with a white mask-like face. The creature's upper-body was black, and the lower part was dark grey with a green crystal in the middle of its chest. Several white spikes jutted out of the creature's body around the crystal, forming a circle around Gig's body. [ATK: 2800]

"Master Gig has an effect that lets me destroy monsters you control equal to the number of face-up Psychic monsters on my field." Shawn explained.

"So you can't actually use it then…" Kali said quietly.

"Sharp. Since the card says 'equal to' not 'up to', I have to destroy three monsters. No more, no less. But I can remedy that by discarding Time Escaper, who lets me remove one Psychic-type monster I control from play until my next Standby Phase." The copper-haired duelist explained, pushing his glasses farther up his nose.

A black portal formed behind Overdrive Teleporter, who turned and entered it with the portal closing behind him immediately. With two monsters on both side of the field, the mask like face of Master Gig seemed to smile slightly.

"Now, at the cost of 1000 life points… Master Gig, destroy her monsters!" Shawn ordered, pointing towards the green creatures.

The red eyes of the Master began to glow, and three bolts of green lightning fell from above. Two struck the Gusto monsters, while the final one hit Gig's controller, who didn't seem fazed in the slightest.

**[Tasha: 8000 / Shawn: 4600]**

"Now, Psychic Nightmare's effect. I can select one random card in your hand and guess if it is a monster, spell or trap. If I guess correctly, Psychic Nightmare gains 1000 attack points until your End Phase," Shawn began. The Psychic duelist raised a finger and pointed towards Tasha. "The card on the left. It's Reeze, Whirlwind of Gusto."

A hologram of the card appeared, revealing that it was in fact, Reeze. Travis, Tasha and Kali gasped as Psychic Nightmare absorbed the cards image, growing significantly in size. [ATK: 2400 - 3400]

"You're cheating! You knew what my set card was, and you can see the cards in my hand!" Tasha shouted.

"Oh come on now, we both know you know what's going on here." Shawn scoffed.

"You-" Tasha paused. _You… can read my mind?_ She wondered in an attempt to confirm her theory. In response, Shawn nodded.

"I'm not cheating. To me, it's as if I'm just listening to you list off the cards in your hand and on the field as you draw or play them." Shawn explained.

"Tasha, what's he going on about?" Travis asked.

"This guy… can read minds… he's a literal psychic duelist…" Tasha said quietly.

"No way…" Travis mumbled in disbelief.

"So he'll know what every card she draws is… she won't be able to plan out an effective strategy like this…" Kali said quietly.

"Yes, yes, I can read minds. Moving on." Shawn said impatiently. "I activate my set Pinpoint Shot. I can declare one card name, and if it's in your hand or face-down on the field, it is destroyed. I declare Liberty at Last." Shawn explained, pointing towards the reversed card on Tasha's right.

"You got it right…" Tasha grumbled. Her set card exploded into shimmering holographic fragments, leaving her with one set card left.

"I figured between that and Limit Reverse, it was the greater of two evils. Especially since Limit Reverse requires you to summon the monster in attack position." Shawn chuckled.

"This isn't fair… she's at a clear disadvantage. Her opponent isn't just going to wander into a trap since he knows it's coming." Travis complained.

"Whoever said I was fair? I told you earlier, I don't care much for honor," Shawn laughed. "Now, Psychic Nightmare! Attack her directly! …Or rather, force her to activate Limit Reverse."

Psychic Nightmare charged forward, but as the Psychic monster did Limit Reverse rose up and Gusto Egul blocked the demonic creatures approach. [ATK: 200] With a swift strike from Psychic Nightmare's claws, Egul was destroyed.

**[Tasha: 4800 / Shawn: 4600]**

"Since Egul was destroyed, I can special summon one level four or lower non-Tuner Gusto monster from my deck. Come forth, Winda!" Tasha called.

Another light breeze blew and a woman dressed in a brown coat with a white shirt underneath appeared. She had green hair that was vaguely resembled Tasha's in color, and held a green staff in one hand. [DEF: 400]

"Gig, get rid of it." Shawn continued.

Gig's eyes flashed and another bolt of green lightning fell from above, striking and destroying Winda. But in the girls place appeared none other than Gusto Gulldo. The teal bird folded its wings over its face and crouched low, taking a defensive stance. [DEF: 500]

"Since Winda was destroyed by my opponents attacking monster, I can special summon a Gusto Tuner from my deck." Tasha explained.

"What a nuisance." Shawn groaned. "I set one card and end my turn."

"Draw! I-"

"I activate Mind Crush! This lets me declare one card name, and if it's in your hand, all copies of it go to the graveyard. If I'm wrong however, I must discard one card." Shawn explained. "But I don't see myself being wrong about this. I already saw that you have Reeze in your hand, and nothing else in your hand is a threat to me. So discard Reeze."

"Fine." Tasha grumbled as she slotted the only monster in her hand to the graveyard. "I'll set three cards face-down and end my turn."

"Psychic Tuning, Battle Mania and Alchemy Cycle… I see… you're going to use Battle Mania to force me to attack, then draw using Alchemy Cycle." Shawn noted.

"You can just see through everything, can't you?" Tasha said with an exasperated sigh.

"Indeed I can. Now, during my Standby Phase Overdrive Teleporter returns." Shawn reminded her.

A black portal opened and the white-robed form of Overdrive Teleporter stepped back out onto the field. [ATK: 2100]

"Wait, I thought Overdrive Teleporter couldn't be special summoned?" Kali asked.

"Oh, that." Shawn said flatly. "Don't pay any mind to it. The wording of Time Escaper doesn't say 'special summon the removed monster' it says 'banish until'. It never says anything about summoning, so Overdrive Teleporter just sort of… appears." Shawn shrugged.

"So since it isn't a Summon the opponent can't use cards like Torrential Tribute… that's pretty helpful, actually." Travis noted.

"Anyway, I move into my Main Phase and you lose the window to activate Battle Mania." Shawn continued. "Now, since he left and then returned, I activate the effect of Overdrive Teleporter! For 2000 life points, I can special summon another two level three Psychic monsters! Come out, Psychic Commander, Mind Protector!" Shawn called as another red aura surrounded him.

**[Tasha: 4800 / Shawn: 2600]**

Two more portals appeared on the field. From the first came the familiar form of Psychic Commander who appeared on the field wearing a large grin on his face. [ATK: 1400] A golden robot with two objects that resembled gemstones in its palms came out of the second. It had red eyes and light bulbs on the sides of its head. [ATK: 0]

"He's getting pretty low on life points… maybe Tasha can capitalize on this." Travis wondered aloud.

"Now, I tune the level six Overdrive Teleporter to the level three Psychic Commander!" Shawn grinned. "Thoughts of destruction shall rule your mind and fuel your anger! Synchro Summon! Annihilate, Hyper Psychic Blaster!"

A white-and-gold cyborg burst forth from the Synchro gates and landed next to Psychic Nightmare. Hyper Psychic Blaster was tall; at least eight feet. It held one black gun and one white gun, and it raised both of them as it focused on Gulldo with its one, green eye. [ATK: 3000]

"Now, I summon Krebons!" Shawn continued.

A purple and green juggler took the field, laughing quietly as it juggled several transparent green cubes. [ATK: 1200]

"Now, I tune the level three Mind Protector to the level two Krebons!" Shawn grinned as two more of his monsters rose up into the air. "The serenity of a calm mind will sublime your form! Synchro Summon! Restore, Magical Android!"

Magical Android had long red hair and wore an elaborate robe of many different shades of greens and blues. Attached to her shoulders was a blue ring with several green orbs on it. In one hand she held a strange staff and on her other arm was an even stranger blue circular device. [ATK: 2400]

"Now, Hyper Psychic Blaster! Attack Gusto Gulldo!" Shawn declared. "When Hyper Psychic Blaster battles a defense position monster, it inflicts piercing damage! Then, I gain life points equal to that damage!"

The black blaster went off, firing a red stream of energy which vaporized Gulldo and then continued forward to strike Tasha.

**[Tasha: 2300 / Shawn: 2600]**

Immediately after, the white gun began to suck in a pale green light, which began increasing Shawn's life points. The copper-haired man had a triumphant look on his face, which quickly turned to agitation when he saw the familiar form of Egul appear in Gulldo's place. [DEF: 400]

**[Tasha: 2300 / Shawn: 5100]**

"I attack with the rest of my monsters!" Shawn snarled.

Psychic Nightmare struck down Egul, but Winda immediately appeared in the birds place. When Magical Android took down Winda, Gulldo appeared. Then when Master Gig brought down a bolt of green lightning that shatter Gulldo's hologram, they returned back to start as new monster, Gusto Grif, a large green griffin wearing armor appeared in Gulldo's place. [DEF: 300]

"What pests." Shawn complained. "I end my turn. Magical Android's effect kicks in now, giving me 600 life points for each Psychic-type monster I control. I have 4, so that's 2400 more life points." Shawn explained as he glowed with a vibrant green aura, a smirk on his face as he adjusted his glasses.

**[Tasha: 2300 / Shawn: 7500]**

"Still think she can capitalize on my lack of life points?" Shawn laughed as he looked in Travis's direction.

"You've already lost." Tasha smirked.

"What are you going on about?" Shawn growled.

"I activate my face-down Psychic Tuning to special summon the Psychic-type Musto, Oracle of Gusto from my graveyard and treat him as a Tuner." Tasha began.

The tall form of Musto reappeared on the field, another cold wind blowing to signal his presence. [ATK: 1800]

"You're going to Synchro Summon Daigusto Sphreez…" Shawn said slowly as he read Tasha's mind. His eyes widened and he quickly scanned the cards he had left in his hand.

"Bingo! I tune my level four Musto to my level two Gusto Grif!" Tasha announced. "Serene gales will soothe the raging souls! Synchro Summon! Pacify, Daigusto Sphreez!"

As Sphreez's hologram came into being, a powerful gust began to blow through the hallway. Shawn grumbled something to himself as he looked at Sphreez, learning about its effect from Tasha's mind. Sphreez had light green hair that ended in orange tips, much like Reeze's hair. She wore a green-and-teal chest plate and held onto a slim wooden staff that was topped with a green crystal. [ATK: 2000]

"Don't forget the drawback to Psychic Tuning. Since the monster you summoned with it left the field, you take damage equal to its level times 400, for an overall loss of 2000 life points." Shawn reminded her. Tasha grimaced as a red aura surrounded her, leaving her with very few life points left. But to her, it didn't even matter anymore.

**[Tasha: 700 / Shawn: 7500]**

"Now, for Sphreez's effect. When she is Synchro summoned, I can add one Gusto to my hand. I'll pick Gusto Egul. Now then… I'll end my turn there." Tasha finished.

"Draw!" Shawn declared, growing desperate to find an out to this situation.

"I activate Battle Mania, so all of your monsters are forced to attack this turn!" Tasha declared. "But not only that, I activate Alchemy Cycle to reduce Sphreez's attack points to zero!"

Sphreez began to glow with a violent red aura, falling down to one knee as all of her energy left her body. [ATK: 2000 - 0]

"Damn it!" Shawn cursed.

"What's going on?" Kali asked, unaware of Sphreez's effect.

"My guess is he read Tasha's mind and realized he's done for. You see, Sphreez can't be destroyed by battle. But only that, while she's on the field any battle damage taken involving a Gusto monster is dealt to the opponent instead. He filled up his field with so many powerful monsters, that there's no way he'll make it through the turn." Travis smiled.

"No…" Shawn whispered as looked at his hand. He held Time Escaper, Reinforced Human Borg and Brain Research Lab. Nothing that could get him out of this. Even if he used Time Escaper to remove one monster, between any combinations of the remaining three he still had enough attacking strength to deal over 7500 damage to himself. With Battle Mania, he couldn't even skip his Battle Phase. That left only one option. Weakly, he rose his hand and pointed towards Sphreez. "Attack." He said with a defeated tone.

"Yes! She did it!" Kali cheered.

"Don't get too happy. I told you, I don't have any of this 'duelist pride'. The second my life points hit zero, you're all done for." Shawn said, a slight smile crossing his face.

Hyper Psychic Blaster fired his black blaster towards Sphreez, unleashing a powerful beam of red energy. Gig's eyes glowed, lightning descending from on high towards the Daigusto monster. Psychic Nightmare unleashed a deafening scream, sending sound waves towards the 0-attack point monster. Finally, Magical Android sent a stream of green energy towards the creature.

Sphreez began to twirl her staff, a barrier forming around her. As all the attacks hit it, the barrier grew brighter and brighter. Finally, after all the attacks had hit the barrier, Sphreez thrust her staff forward and unleashed all the stored up energy. It tore across the hallway, destroying all four of Shawn's monster at once and dropping the copper-haired man's life points to zero. But that wasn't all, as the wave of energy traveled down the hallway Tasha followed closely behind it.

**[Tasha: 700 / Shawn: 0]**

"What a pity. Oh well, no point in dwelling on it." Shawn sighed once his last life point was gone. As he pulled the Dimensional Prison card from his pocket, he looked up and saw Tasha was running towards him.

"Call the elevator!" Tasha shouted. Using her momentum to her advantage, she slammed her fist into Shawn's stomach. The copper-haired man grunted in pain and leaned forward, but Tasha, fearful this wasn't enough to stop him, continued on.

She grabbed the glasses off of Shawn's face and tossed them over his shoulder. She continued by ripping the Dimensional Prison card from his hand and finally, she shoved him to the ground. Shawn cursed loudly and reached around feebly for is glasses. In the background, the elevator dinged.

"It's here!" Travis shouted.

Tasha turned and bolted, running into the elevator and pushing the button for the lobby just as Shawn located his glasses. Shawn shouted something, but Tasha was slamming the 'Close Door' button too feverishly to notice. Shawn began to run forward but the doors closed and shut him out, allowing the group to breathe a sigh of relief.

"Wait… he got to us by using Emergency Teleport… what'll stop him from doing that again?" Kali asked.

"Hello." Shawn said, appearing in the elevator as if on cue.

Travis turned his body and slammed his fist into Shawn's face. Shawn's head hit the wall and then the copper-haired man slumped down, unconscious. Travis turned with a triumphant smile to the shocked faces of Tasha and Kali.

"What? ...He was going to kill us!" Travis protested.

"…True. Anyway, he's just going to come after us again after he wakes up. Since this guy doesn't seem to care about duelist pride I won't feel bad about doing this.…" Tasha began, her voice trailing off as she kneeled over Shawn. She removed his deck and extra deck, shuffling through them and pocketing a number of cards.

_Outside the building…_

Jared, Everest and Demetri continued their mad dash towards the door, which gradually slowed to a stop at the bottom of the stairs as a single member of the Arcadia Movement exited the door and stood in front of it. Jared was panting heavily as he looked up at the robed woman, who just raised a curious eyebrow.

"What's the hurry, Jared?" The woman asked.

"I… I need to see Rugal…" Jared said with an edge of hostility.

"Uhh… you can see if he's in his office. He might've already gone to the roof with Alyssa and Jehan though." The robed female replied. "Who are these two behind you?"

"…I've appeared to have developed some powers of my own. I was able to get these two over to our side using Change of Heart, but it won't last much longer so I need to see the boss as soon as possible." Jared lied. He was quickly realizing that maybe news that they'd defected hadn't spread beyond Rugal. He had left not wearing his uniform, so him not wearing on right now made sense. He had to play this off right, despite the fact his mind was jumping at the possibility of seeing Alyssa again, he had to keep cool.

"Oh, that's wonderful! You can go on in, I'll just radio up to him that you're on your way." The robed woman smiled.

Jared nodded and ran in, Everest and Demetri in tow. He slammed on the call elevator button as he looked out the glass windows at the front of the lobby. The doors opened and the trio ran in, just as the woman started to shout something.

As they entered, Jared immediately covered the mouth of the first person he saw in the elevator, Everest catching on and doing the same. Demetri meanwhile selected and pushed the highest available number on from the selection.

"Mmmmppf!"

"Hey… wait a minute… This guy was in the Fortune Cup…I know Cain and that other guy were part of Arcadia, but him too? Damn, they have people everywhere." Everest muttered to himself as he looked into Travis's eyes.

"Nope. Look." Demetri said, attempting to use as few words as possibly as he pointed to the unconscious Arcadia member slumped against the wall.

"Huh?" Everest and Jared said in unison. They released their grip on the three and took a step back, trying to give everyone some space in the already packed elevator.

"Yeah! You two geniuses ruined everything! We were about to escape through the lobby, but you three just went ahead and ruined everything!" Tasha shouted, throwing her arms up.

"You wouldn't've gotten far. They have guards outside," Jared started. "So who exactly are you?"

_Outside…_

"What's gotten you in huff?" Mura asked as the guard as he and Michael ascended the steps towards the building.

"Turns out I just let a traitor into the building. He had two accomplices no less. He took the elevator and I even told him where Rugal was." The woman sighed.

"Jared?" Mura guessed.

"Mhmm."

"I figured as much. We'll handle it." Mura nodded. He stepped up his pace and entered the lobby, immediately turning to the elevator. He whipped out his cellphone and dialed a number, watching the floor number change as he did so. "Hey, stop the elevators. We got some intruders inside." Mura snapped.

The number above the number changed from twenty to twenty-one, and then ceased to increase. Mura smiled and continued to speak. "We'll go deal with them. When I give you the word, send them up to floor twenty-five." Mura said, snapping his phone shut before the voice on the other end could reply. "Well, looks like we have some unexpected visitors. Follow me." Mura said. Michal nodded and the two rushed into the stairwell and began their ascent.

_Inside the elevator…_

The trio quickly exchanged names and motives among themselves. Kali seemed disheartened at the news of what happened to Michael, but took some solace in the fact that he'd found Jared and his friend was trying to help him. Tasha and Travis were visibly worried about what was going on the city, the two of them having family there. The elevator jolted suddenly and stopped.

"Hmm… they're onto us." Jared murmured, looking at the number of floors. Twenty-one wasn't the top floor, so obviously some outside force had influenced the stop of the elevator.

"You're one of these Arcadia guys. Why can't you just teleport us out of here?" Tasha asked.

"I… don't actually have any powers." Jared mumbled.

"Then why are you-"

"What happened Michael happened to me… and should have happened to me again." Jared said quietly, hanging his head in shame.

"So he's really on their side?" Kali asked.

"Unfortunately. He can still think and possibly talk freely, but he'll do anything they ask him to." Jared answered.

"So… what do you think will happen when they finally decide to 'deal' with us?" Travis asked.

"I'm guessing they'll send us to that 'void' this guy was talking about." Tasha sighed, kicking Shawn's leg.

"Void?" Everest asked.

"Consider it the removed from play zone of real life." Jared said sadly.

The six duelists all fell silent and looked at the ground. The elevator jolted, and resumed its ascent. All eyes watched as the numbers began to climb, before stopping at twenty-five.

"If this is the end, I just want to remind you I love you." Travis said. Tasha smiled and two embraced as the doors slowly opened.

"Welcome!" A voice boomed.

The six stepped out of the elevator, leaving Shawn behind as the doors closed behind them. The floor consisted of one giant room with several duel fields, with two people aside from themselves it. One with black hair and… Michael.

"Just like any good fable, the rag-tag band of heroes makes a final stand against an impossible power. I think it's only sporting to you this chance." Mura smiled.

"Michael!" Jared called, taking a few steps forward.

"Oh, so you're going to be the first to fall?" Mura chuckled. Wordlessly, Michael activated his duel disk.

"You don't have to do this!" Jared protested.

"Oh come now Jared, you _know _he does. After all, you've been through the same thing." Mura reminded him.

"Alright, since there's no talking you out of this…" Jared growled, activating his own duel disk.

"Wait!"

Jared watched as Kali passed him, taking a place on the field and activating her duel disk.

"Please, let me give this a try." Kali asked.

"Ergh…" Jared looked conflicted as he glanced between the two.

"Oh come on, you only profit from this. If she loses, you get your chance, and if she wins, well then you can fight me." Mura smiled.

"…Go for it." Jared mumbled, taking a few steps backwards and clearing the field.

"I haven't seen you in since I became King." Michael mused.

"Last time we dueled, you may have won. But this time… I swear there'll be a different outcome!" Kali declared.

"Haha… Kali, I'm the absolute last person you should face with that deck." Michael chuckled softly. "But I do appreciate the effort."

"So… are you actually talking to me, or is it your puppeteer?" Kali asked after a moment.

"It's me." Michael said with a small smile.

"Enough talk! Michael, why don't you start this duel off?" Mura asked.

"Well, I hope you were serious about that different outcome. I think you have an idea of what this guy will do to the loser." Michael muttered, nodding in Mura's direction as he drew his opening hand.

"Now… give us a show." Mura chuckled.

* * *

><p>So if you're still with me on this, you have my thanks. Originally this took a while because I had NO idea how Gusto or Banished Psychics play. But in the end, I'm actually pretty proud of this duel, so I hope you enjoyed it.<p>

To end off my summer, I've decided that I'm going to try to finish this story. Considering my updates haven't been terribly reliable, you might not want to hold your breath. But please know that I am trying, if only to prove to myself I can actually prove to myself that I can finish a project. With any luck, you'll actually see a few more chapters this month. Until then, have yourselves a fine day~


	22. Chapter 22: Judgment of Thunder

**[Michael: 8000 / Kali: 8000]**

"Well, here we go. I summon Ally of Justice Core Destroyer." Michael announced.

A slim white and gold quadrupedal robot appeared in front of Michael. It stood silently, its single red-eye focused on its opponent. [ATK: 1400]

"I'll set one card face-down and end my turn." Michael finished.

"Core Destroyer… so this really is a horrible matchup." Travis said quietly.

"What does Core Destroyer even do?" Tasha asked.

"It destroys any Light monster that battles it… before damage calculation. So as long as Core Destroyer keeps battling Light monsters, even if they're stronger, it won't be destroyed thanks to its effect. The issue here is that Kali uses Watts… an archetype of consisting entirely of Light monsters." Travis explained.

"So if it's left as is…" Tasha trailed off.

"Core Destroyer will be able to defeat any monster in her deck, regardless of strength. Thankfully though, Watts have a few tricks up their sleeve." Travis said.

"Draw." Kali said quietly. She glanced over the cards in her hand and then nodded to herself. "I summon Wattcobra!"

The blue and red electric cobra appeared in front of Kali, sticking its lightning bolt shaped tongue out and hissing loudly. [ATK: 1000]

"Now, Wattcobra attacks you directly!" Kali announced.

Wattcobra shot forward and slid under Core Destroyer, then launched itself upwards and struck Michael's duel disk, sending sparks flying.

**[Michael: 7000 / Kali: 8000]**

"Some of her monsters can attack directly? So she can bypass Core Destroyer completely." Everest noted.

"Yep! That's not all, either! When Wattcobra inflicts damage through a direct attack, I can add a Watt monster from my deck to my hand. I'll add another Wattcobra, and then I'll activate Photon Lead to special summon a level four or lower Light monster in face-up attack position… like the Wattcobra I just added." Kali smirked.

In a flash of blinding light, a second Wattcobra appeared next to the first one, hissing just as its predecessor had. [ATK: 1000]

"Wattcobra attacks you directly!" Kali shouted.

Wattcobra launched itself up into the air over Core Destroyer, then dropped down and struck Michael's duel disk, causing the Ally of Justice duelist to adopt a surprised expression.

**[Michael: 6000 / Kali: 8000]**

"With this Wattcobra's effect, I'll add Wattfox to my hand. Then, to finish my turn off, I set three cards face-down." Kali finished.

"I'll admit it, I'm surprised." Michael said as he drew for his turn. "But this deck still has a lot to show you. I activate Ancient Rules to special summon Ally of Justice Clausolas from my hand!"

A gold and black mechanical bird that resembled a vulture burst onto the field, shrieking loudly. [ATK: 2300]

"Now, I'll tribute Clausolas to summon Ally of Justice Omni-Weapon!" Michael continued.

Clausolas was replaced by a larger white and purple machine, which had a vast array of weapons sticking out of its body. Hammers, drills, fists, truly a weapon designed to handle any situation. [ATK: 2200]

"But Clausolas was stronger…" Kali noted.

"Clausolas lacked an effect. Omni-Weapon has one that I'm quite fond of. But we'll save that fun for later. Right now, I'll have Core Destroyer attack one of your Wattcobras!" Michael declared.

Core Destroyer's red-eye began to glow, but the monster didn't move. Michael glanced towards Mura, who simply shrugged. Then, without warning, Core Destroyer exploded.

"Sakuretsu Armor destroys a monster who is declaring an attack." Kali smiled as her trap card disappeared from the field.

"Not bad… but you still have Omni-Weapon to deal with." Michael reminded her as the monster in question began advancing towards Kali's monsters.

Raising one of its many weapons, a drill, it stabbed it downwards and pierced the hologram, which gave off several sparks before fading away.

**[Michael: 6000 / Kali: 6800]**

"Now, for Omni-Weapon's effect. When it destroys a Light monster by battle and sends it to the graveyard, I draw a card. Then, if it's a level four or lower Dark monster, I can special summon it." Michael explained as he picked up the top card of his deck. He chuckled to himself as he saw his draw. "Oh, this is just perfect. Come forth, Ally of Justice Cyclone Creator!"

A small red and black mechanical bird appeared next to Omni-Weapon. The bird didn't even need to flap its wings to keep its altitude up, as it had two propellers in its wings which kept it afloat. [ATK: 1400]

"Cyclone Creator, attack the last Wattcobra!" Michael ordered.

Cyclone Creator flapped its wing and a small hurricane formed in front of it. It traveled towards Wattcobra and sucked up the electric monster, tossing it high into the air where its hologram disappeared.

**[Michael: 6000 / Kali: 6400]**

"He's almost closed the gap between their life points…" Jared said quietly.

"Almost, but my turn isn't over yet. I activate my face-down Urgent Tuning. Now, I tune my level three Ally of Justice Cyclone Creator to the level five Ally of Justice Omni-Weapon!" Michael called, raising his arm into the air. "Feed off of this dreadful light, and use it grow. Use it to return this world to darkness! Synchro Summon! Rise, Ally of Justice Light Gazer!"

A grey floating robot emerged from the Synchro gates. A ring floated around its torso with many tiny search lights on it. The robot had no legs, and its hands were also two search lights, and its eyes gave off an eerie green glow. [ATK: 2400 - 2800]

"Light Gazer gains 200 additional attack points for every Light monster in your graveyard. Now, since it's still the Battle Phase… Light Gazer, attack her directly!" Michael commanded.

Light Gazer raised both of its arms, focusing the lights on Kali. The girl raised her arms to shield her eyes from the light, and as a result, didn't see the wave of energy that Light Gazer had launched towards her. It struck her and sent her to the ground, knocking the wind out of her.

**[Michael: 6000 / Kali: 3600]**

"I… activate Damage… Condenser… by discarding one card when… I take battle damage… I can summon a monster w-with… attack equal to or less than that amount." Kali choked out as she got back on her feet.

She slid Wattmole into her graveyard, and the third and final Wattcobra appeared on the field, gazing up at the opposing Synchro monster. Unfortunately, with another Light monster in the graveyard the search lights of Light Gazer grew even brighter. [ATK: 1000] [ATK: 2800 - 3000]

"Not bad. You've improved. I end my turn." Michael finished.

"Draw. I summon Wattfox, and then activate Judgment of Thunder! Since I summoned a Thunder-type monster, I can destroy one monster on your side of the field. Bye-bye Light Gazer." Kali smirked.

A yellow fox with purple-tipped ears and a tail appeared next to Wattcobra. Judgment of Thunder rose up behind it, and the tiny monster became shrouded in an aura of electricity which discharged itself into the air after a moments. A bolt of lightning fell from above, striking Light Gazer destroying it. [ATK: 800]

"…I guess you were serious about trying to make this duel have different outcome than the last one. I got a little overconfident. With cards like Core Destroyer and Light Gazer on my side, I didn't have very high hopes for you." Michael admitted.

"I told you, I'm giving it my all. I attack directly with both Cobra and Fox!" Kali declared.

The monsters flew past Michael's empty field and struck the brown-haired duelist, who seemed lost in thought.

**[Michael: 4200 / Kali: 3600]**

"I'll use Wattcobra to add Wattwoodpecker to my hand, and then during my Main Phase 2 I'll tune the level two Wattfox to the level four Wattcobra!" Kali announced. "Bypass all barriers; strike the foe at their core! Let its thundering roar envelop you! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Wattchimera!"

A bolt of lightning struck the ground, and then formed into a new beast. It was a purple and yellow electric winged lion a red mane. A purple and yellow snake that served as the tail of the beast reared up, locking eyes with Michael and hissing. [ATK: 1400]

"Then I'll set one card face-down and end my turn." Kali finished.

"Draw. I summon Ally Salvo." Michael announced.

A black sphere with several gold-rimmed glass plates on it that showed its core appeared. [ATK: 400]

"Ally Salvo attacks Wattchimera." Michael said calmly.

"But it's weaker…" Kali muttered.

"I think you've gathered by now that Allies of Justice don't play nicely with Light monsters." Michael chuckled.

Ally Salvo flew forward, but the Thunder monster's tail shot out and struck it, causing a surprisingly large explosion which enveloped both Wattchimera and Kali's set card.

**[Michael: 3200 / Kali: 3600]**

"When Ally Salvo is destroyed by a Light monster, I destroy two cards on the field. I set one card face-down and end my turn." Michael finished.

"Darn it… Draw. I summon Wattwoodpecker, and equip with Wattjustment. He gains 800 attack points, but his effect is negated. But the biggest benefit of this card is that when he inflicts battle damage, I can draw a card. Now, Wattwoodpecker, attack him directly!" Kali commanded.

A white and black woodpecker with a long yellow beak and a red crown formed in front of Kali, and then immediately began to glow with a vibrant yellow aura. [ATK: 1000 - 1800] The woodpecker flew forward, pulled its head back, and then launched it forward, its beak smashing into Michael's duel disk.

**[Michael: 1400 / Kali: 3600]**

"Trap card, Damage Gate. It works like your Damage Condenser, but with two differences. The first is that I don't have to discard, and the second is that the monster I summon comes from graveyard. Be reborn, Cyclone Creator!" Michael called.

The red bird monster reappeared, hovering silently in the air. [ATK: 1400]

"I still get to draw." Kali said. She drew her card and stared at it for several moments. "Your move." She finished.

"Draw. I activate Monster Slot. I target one monster on my field, and then remove one monster from my graveyard with the same level as that monster. Then I draw a card, and if it's a monster with the same level as those to, I can special summon it. I don't have enough targets for any other choice, so I select Cyclone Creator and remove Core Destroyer." Michael explained.

A large green slot machine with a rather creepy green face and pink hair appeared. It opened its mouth, revealing three slot reels. The first was stopped on Cyclone Creator, the second on Core Destroyer, and the third was still spinning.

"What are the odds of him pulling that?" Travis huffed, crossing his arms.

"Well, even if he doesn't get anything, he stills gets to draw a card." Everest shrugged.

"Now, let's see…" Michael muttered, drawing the top card of his deck. "Heh, it's a monster card. The level three Ally of Justice Searcher." Michael smirked as he turned the card around for everyone to see.

The last reel stopped on the image of the drawn monster, and then the machine closed its mouth. It opened it moments later and spit out the monster that had appeared on the last reel. It was a stout dark green robot, with wheels on the side of its body in place of legs. It had two small protrusions on its back with flash lights attached that scanned the field. [ATK: 1400]

"Are you serious? He actually got a level three monster?" Travis groaned.

"It's not over yet. I summon Ally of Justice Thousand Arms." Michael continued.

The black and purple warrior dropped down next to Cyclone Creator, swinging its arms wildly, showing off all of the various bladed weaponry it had at its disposal. [ATK: 1700]

"Finally, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Wattjustment." Michael said, his voice getting quiet. "…Thousand Arms attacks Wattwoodpecker. Cyclone Creator and Searcher attack directly."

A small typhoon formed under Wattwoodpecker, tossing the bird up high into the air. It flapped its wings and managed to flounder its way out of the cyclone, falling down to the ground… right at the feet of the waiting Thousand Arms. [ATK: 1800 - 1000] Raising a sword up high, it brought it down and shattered the Thunder-type monsters hologram.

**[Michael: 1400 / Kali: 2900]**

Following that, Cyclone Creator and Searcher launched themselves forward, slamming into the Watt duelist and dropping her down to one knee.

**[Michael: 1400 / Kali: 100]**

"100 points away from defeat… do you still think you can turn this around?" Michael asked softly.

"You… only have 1400… if I get Monster Reborn, I could bring back Wattchimera and end it right there." Kali reminded him as she shakily got to her feet.

"True. But it's a lot more likely that you _won't_ draw Monster Reborn." Michael countered.

"Yeah, well, everything has just sorta worked out up until now. So why won't this?" Kali asked. Michael shot her a questioning glance. "We both got this city after we set out to do so. Sure you got hurt, but it ended up getting you an invitation to a tournament! You even ended up winning that tournament! We didn't have a place to stay that first night, but it still worked out. You wanted to find your friend, and even though things have gone awry, he's right here! Even after we got taken in by these Arcadia guys, we got to see each other again! Maybe one of us just has really good luck and can make things like this just… work out." Kali said.

"…Hmm…." Michael lowered his head and focused on the ground. "You're just going to hope… everything works out?" Michael asked, raising his head slightly.

"Well, in this situation, it's all I can do." Kali replied with a smile.

"…Well then. I… I'm really glad you haven't given up. But even then, I can't just let you win this duel. Mura asked for a show, so I have to deliver. I'll give you one last hurdle to overcome." Michael said, clenching a fist. "I tune the level three Ally of Justice Cyclone Creator to the level three Ally of Justice Searcher and the level four Ally of Justice Thousand Arms!"

"Level 10… few Synchro monsters have a level that high… and the only ones that actually have a higher level than them are the things of legends." Everest mumbled as the three monsters rose into the air above the field.

"Not for the sake of evil, but the sake of the world, extinguish this cursed light! The last hopes of the dying planet lie within you! Exterminate the evil! Synchro Summon! End this battle, Ally of Justice…"

Behind Michael formed a colossal monster. It was a giant hunched over machine, with no legs and a gold and purple torso. Both of its arms had two large gold spikes, and between those spikes sat a thin purple cannon. On its back sat another cannon that was larger than the previous two combined. The machine powered up and a golden eye turned on, taking aim and focusing all of its weaponry on Kali. [ATK: 3300]

"…Decisive Armor." Michael finished.

"Decisive is right… look at thing!" Tasha wailed, burying her face in her hands.

"She can still draw Monster Reborn though. It's not over yet." Travis said.

"If you really think you can turn this around, this is your last chance. I end my turn." Michael finished.

"…Draw!" Kali said. She drew the card, but didn't look at it. She closed her eyes and took several deep breaths. It all rode on this card. She opened her eyes to see all eyes in the room focused on the card she was holding. Slowly, she lifted her arm and added the card to her hand. She locked eyes with Michael for a moment and then looked down at her hand.

"…Did she…"

"…I summon Wattgiraffe." Kali said quietly.

The yellow electric giraffe with two light bulbs in place of ears appeared, narrowing its eyes and pawing at the ground. [ATK: 1200]

"So you didn't get it…" Michael said softly.

"Nope." Kali said, shaking her head.

"Agh, she was so close!" Everest groaned.

"Wattgiraffe, attack him directly!" Kali ordered.

The giraffe galloped forward, it ran around Decisive Armor and head-butt Michael the chest. The Ally of Justice duelist didn't flinch. Rather, he looked disappointed.

**[Michael: 200 / Kali: 100]**

"I end my turn." Kali finished.

"You're taking this well." Michael noted.

"What happens happens. I'd like this not to happen though. I don't suppose you'll just cancel the duel? We all walk away happy?" Kali asked.

"…I really don't want to do this…" Michael whispered. "I don't want to do this to a friend."

"Michael. This duel was… surprisingly interesting. Especially since you were playing against a deck full of Light monsters. She got you down to 200 life points, and you got her down to 100. Quitting here would tarnish what has been a fine duel. Attack with Decisive Armor and finish this." Mura ordered. Michael tried to resist, but an order had just been issued.

"…Decisive Armor!" Michael called. The humming of machinery started to fill the room, as spheres of dark purple light formed at the ends of all of Decisive Armor's cannons. A pulse of energy radiated from the giant monster, confirming that this would be the final blow. "Finish it." Michael said, his voice getting softer after each syllable.

Michael turned away from his opponent, not wanting to see what would happened next. He gave a sigh and looked down at the ground just as the three cannons simultaneously fired off beams of purple lights towards Wattgiraffe.

"Well, that's one down." Mura said to himself. "Well, Jared, looks like you'll get your chance to duel him after all-"

"Honest!"

"What?" Michael whipped around to see an angel appear behind Wattgiraffe. The angel wrapped its white wings around the Thunder monster and when the wings pulled back, Wattgiraffe was covered in a radiant golden aura. [ATK: 1200 - 4500]

"It wasn't Monster Reborn, but it works!" Travis grinned.

"When a Light monster attacks or is attacked, by discarding Honest during damage step, it gains attack points equal to the attack of the monster it's battling." Kali explained.

"Heh… not only is a Light monster going to beat Decisive Armor, but the Allies of Justice as a whole." Michael smiled. He glanced towards Mura. "I can clear a field of high attack monsters, but lose to a deck that never summoned a monster with over 1500 attack points. People can surprise you sometimes."

Wattgiraffe charged forward and then leapt into the air, right into the path of Decisive Armor's lasers. The golden aura protected it, allowing it charge through the lasers and smash right into the core of the giant monster. Parts of the monsters body began to explode, and its arms detached, falling down uselessly beside it. With a final groan, the giant torso leaned forward, and then exploded.

**[Michael: 0 / Kali: 100]**

Everyone covered their faces as they were bombarded with dust and smoke. It began to subside after a few moments, revealing Michael lying on the ground, eyes fixed on the ceiling. Kali deactivated her duel disk and ran over to Michael's side, while Mura walked over slowly. The two looked down at him, and the brown-haired duelist smiled.

"Well, I guess everything worked out for you after all." Michael choked out.

"Sorry… I didn't realize your monster was going to explode…" Kali apologized.

"It was do or die, you have nothing to be sorry for." Michael reassured her. He rolled his head to the side slightly to look up at Mura. "Did you see it? The weak toppled the strong. Give people a chance and they can surprise you. Not everyone gets that chance in this world. If Rugal gets his world, I think it would be even harder for people to get that chance." Michael said.

"I think you might've hit your head a little harder than I thought. Everyone will get a chance to show what they can do." Mura replied coldly. "In hindsight, this loss is my fault. I ordered you to attack. If I'd ordered you to use the third effect of Decisive Armor, you would've won. By sending your hand to the graveyard, you could've sent all Light monsters in her hand to the graveyard, and she would've taken damage equal to their combined attack. So this was my fault."

"The first time I played against her, I won. Then she played against Travis, and he beat her. But when push came to shove, she defeated the strongest monster this deck has to offer. What if someone botches their chance? Makes a mistake like you just did? What if someone who brought something to the table starts having a string of off day? You'll just cast them by the wayside?" Michael asked.

"It… would be for the betterment of the group." Mura said quietly.

"Well, what if it was you? Someone had you do something you weren't that good at. You would be cast aside, despite the fact you still have something to offer. Are you okay with that?" Michael asked.

Mura backed up a few steps from Kali and Michael and stared at the two for several moments. The rest of the group slowly made their way over to Michael, who pulled himself up into a sitting position. Mura took a deep breath and then brushed some of the hair out his eyes before fixing Michael with a cold stare.

"You've failed to stop the intruders, and you've been defeated. Then to top it all off, you're questioning the motives of the group. Michael, I think you know where I'm going with this. Get over here." Mura said, removing a card from his duel disk.

With great effort, Michael pulled himself up from the ground and walked towards Mura, stopping in front of him. Michael stared at him for a few seconds and then shook his head, a smile on his face. The usually calm Mura seemed a little agitated by this.

"Smile while you can." Mura grumbled.

"You know, you didn't seem like a half bad guy. It's unfortunate one disagreement has caused such a divide between us. I know you're telling yourself that it's for the good of the Arcadia Movement that I'm sent away, but is it really? You know I'm a capable duelist. Plus I'm still under your control. I think you're just annoyed we don't see eye to eye." Michael observed.

"He did win a high-caliber tournament. That's never a walk in the park. Plus, you're having him use an entirely new deck that he isn't used to." Kali spoke up.

"Yep, he sure is capable. Granted, he should be in prison for breaking the law." Everest added.

"That doesn't help the argument." Jared grumbled.

"Doesn't it? This guy should be in prison too," Everest said, nodding at Mura. "You see what this group he's a part of has done? To distract Security from coming after them, they released convicts into the city. It's chaos down there."

"So that's what caused all the commotion we saw from the window… I hope Dad is alright." Travis said quietly.

"We almost didn't make it here because of them." Jared added.

"Well, if you still want to go through with this, go ahead. Cast aside an able-bodied person who has arguably does less wrong than you just because you don't see eye to eye with them." Michael said.

"You…" Mura growled and then stomped away a few steps. He looked down at the ground and clenched both of his fists. His body shook for a moment, but then his shoulders slumped slightly and he relaxed his hands. He turned back to them with an expressionless look on his face.

"No matter what you say, this is something I believe in. With all my being, I WILL see this through. I will defend Lord Rugal's ideal." Mura said.

"The guard dog of the new world…" Everest muttered.

"…However. All of your blabbering hasn't been for nothing. You've convinced me to give you a chance. One chance. If you can beat even me, then… maybe your argument has more merit than I thought. Perhaps it could even sway my judgment." Mura explained. He raised his hand and pointed towards Kali. "You. Whether your victory was a fluke or not will be determined now. If push comes to shove, will the weak again topple the strong? Let's see. Re-activate your duel disk." Mura said.

"Kali… I'm sorry you have to do this. His deck is really strong. I was crushed completely, even though I was using my Genex deck." Michael said. "I'm sorry if I'm not encouraging you, but at least you know what's in store… I wish I could take your place. I tried to hold back. But he won't."

"I won't allow you to take her place," Mura said, shaking his head. "But… hmm… actually, I would allow you two to face me together though."

"Why?" Michael asked.

"The new world will start today. I don't have time to take you on individually, and I still wish to see if what this girl can do. You're weaker than me, Michael. So I'll still be seeing what lesser duelists can do. We're playing for all the marbles this time." Mura explained.

"…Well, fighting alongside you is better than fighting against you." Michael smiled.

"Think we can do this?" The Watt duelist asked.

"Who knows? Hopefully everything will just work out." Michael chuckled.

"What if you just force Michael to play poorly?" Jared asked guardedly.

"Oh." Mura blinked. "Michael, ignore any commands I give you related to dueling during the upcoming duel."

"Will do." Michael nodded.

"Let's begin then." Mura said, activating his own duel disk. _Guard dog of the new world, eh? But I won't have to fend them off for much longer…_

_Rooftop of the Arcadia Movement building..._

Rugal stood on the top of the Arcadia Movement building, Jehan and Alyssa standing behind him. The trio was silent as they listened to the sounds of discord coming from the city. Alyssa was standing as still as a statue. Jehan was restlessly looking around and shifting his weight constantly. Rugal was staring at the sky with a small smile on his face.

Then it happened. The sky above the training hall began to distort. Rugal began to laugh in triumph as a small pinpoint of white appeared over the training hall. Soon, they would break through to the other side. Soon, his dream would become a reality.

* * *

><p>Woo! Actually got another one done haha. I'm pumped to write next bit. I'm satisfied with this duel, but I know it could be better. I just really wanted to end it the way I did. Well, if you got any comments or feedback please feel free to leave them. Thanks for reading, and I hope you all have yourselves a fine day.<p> 


	23. Chapter 23: Battle Waltz

"Here's how this is going to work: I'll start with 16000 life points, and the two of you will each have 8000. I need to reduce both of your life points to 0 in order to win. If either of your life points hit 0, all monsters are your side of the field are moved to the graveyard. Continuous cards will remain active as long as there are no maintenance cost or if it has a limited activation time. The turn order will be myself, the girl, and then you, Aker. Since you're going third, you will be the only one allowed to attack in the opening round." Mura explained, pointing to each of them in turn. "Any questions?"

"I'm good." Michael nodded.

"No objections here." Kali said.

"Good. Then, let the duel commence." Mura smirked.

**[Michael: 8000 + Kali: 8000 / Mura: 16000]**

"Draw. I summon Meklord Army of Skiel. Then, I'll follow that up with the field spell Fortissimo the Mobile Fortress." Mura began.

The room began to transform, becoming dark blue with silver pipes running into a large structure at the back of the room. Michael and Kali stood on a silver platform that extended to the front of the structure, where Mura stood. Two cannons were mounted on the side of the structure, and in the center of it was a white, egg-shaped device with a golden sphere in the middle. Above that was the shadowed face of a muscular man with grey and red hair, and above that were three circular white hatches. One of the hatches opened and a blue robotic hummingbird flew out and moved to hover in front of Mura. Its neck was long and grey, and its face was a black screen with an odd pattern of red lines on it. [ATK: 1200]

"Now, for the effect of my Mobile Fortress. Once per turn, I can special summon a Meklord Army monster from my hand. I summon Meklord Army of Wisel!" The black-haired duelist called.

Another hatch opened and a humanoid white robot emerged. It had a different red pattern on its face than Skiel, and one of its arms ended in what looked like a gun. On the other arm was a long, curved green plate that went up to just below its shoulder. Much to the confusion of Mura's opponents, Wisel began to glow with a faint white light and Skiel with a faint blue light. [ATK: 1800 - 1900] [ATK: 1200 - 1400]

"For every other Meklord monster I control, Army of Wisel gains 100 extra attack points. Army of Skiel gains 200, however." Mura explained. "Next, I activate two copies of Boon of the Meklord Emperor. As long as the only two monsters on the field are Meklord monsters, I can draw two cards in exchange for skipping my Battle Phase. Since I activated two, I get to draw four cards."

"We haven't even gotten a chance to summon anything so he got to draw for no cost…" Michael mumbled.

"I set one card face-down and end my turn." Mura finished.

"I draw. I set one monster face-down, and then I set two more cards and end my turn." Kali said, three reversed cards appearing in front of her.

"I'm up. I summon Ally of Justice Quarantine!" Michael called.

A diamond filled with red and black energy appeared in front of Michael, hovering in the air. A small robotic insect creature poked its head out of the diamond and observed the field for a moment before disappearing back inside of it. [ATK: 1700]

"Quarantine, attack Army of Skiel!" Michael commanded.

The diamond began to spin faster and faster, and then it launched itself forward and struck its target. The diamond struck it in the chest, and the monster exploded into various parts, all of which immediately reconstructed into a new Army of Skiel. [ATK: 1200 - 1400]

**[Michael: 8000 + Kali: 8000 / Mura: 15700]**

"When Meklord Army of Skiel is destroyed by battle and sent to the graveyard, I can summon another Meklord Army monster from my deck. Clearly, I chose another Army of Skiel." Mura explained.

"Dang… I set one card face-down and end turn." Michael sighed.

"Draw. I summon Meklord Army of Granel." Mura began.

One of the three hatches opened and a new robot appeared. The two one was a strange light brown robot. Its legs were two quarter circles on either side of its long, narrow torso. Both of its arms ended in large cannons, and it too had a strange red pattern in place of a face. When it appeared, a faint brown aura surrounded it, and then the aura surrounding Skiel began to glow brighter as did the aura around Wisel. [ATK: 1600 - 1800] [ATK: 1400 - 1600] [ATK: 1900 - 2000]

"Also, when Army of Granel is normal summoned, I can halve the attack of one monster on my opponent's side of the field. I select Quarantine." Mura continued.

Army of Granel rose both of its cannons, and fired twin spheres of multi-colored energy at the Ally of Justice. The monster was enveloped by them, and as it plummeted to the ground, unable to move. [ATK: 1700 - 850]

"Then, since I control three or more face-up Meklord monsters, I can summon Meklord Astro Dragon Asterisk from my hand." Mura smirked, turning the card towards his opponents.

The center hatch opened, and from it emerged a long, snake-like creature whose body was similar in color to Granel's. The monster didn't have a face, but rather a silver, blue, and brown infinity symbol all overlaid on top of each other to creature an asterisk-shaped hole in its head, allowing Michael and Kali to see the green core inside. With the arrival the new Meklord monster, Granel, Skiel, and Wisel's auras all began to glow more intensely. [DEF: ? - 0] [ATK: 1800 - 1900] [ATK: 1600 - 1800] [ATK: 2000 - 2100]

"Now… Army of Wisel attacks Quarantine!" Mura commanded.

The humanoid robot ran forward, and raised the arm that appeared to end in a gun. Much to Michael's surprise, the energy that came out of it formed into a sword. A sword that the opposing monster used to cut Quarantine in half.

**[Michael: 6750 + Kali: 8000 / Mura: 15700]**

"Next, Army of Granel attacks your set monster! Furthermore, I activate the effect of Army of Wisel! Now, when Army of Granel attacks your monster, the difference between its attack points and your monsters defense point come out of your life points!" Mura declared.

Granel fired two more spheres of multi-colored energy, this time shooting them towards the reversed card in front of Kali. They crashed into the card, revealing a small dragonfly that disappeared almost instantly. [DEF: 100]

**[Michael: 6750 + Kali: 6200 / Mura: 15700]**

A blue bird with yellow-tipped wings and a red crown appeared in place of the dragonfly, folding its wings over its head and turning blue. [DEF: 800]

"When my opponent destroys Wattdragonfly, I get a Watt monster from deck. This is Wattpheasant." Kali explained.

"Hmm… Well then, Army of Skiel will attack Michael directly." Mura said after a moment.

Skiel pulsed with energy and raised its two lance-like arms, firing off shots of energy which slammed into the Ally of Justice duelist's chest and knocked him to the ground.

**[Michael: 4950 + Kali: 6200 / Mura: 15700]**

"You really aren't holding back here…" Michael grumbled.

"I already told you, this one is for all the marbles." Mura said flatly. "Either way, I end my turn."

"Draw. I summon Wattberyx." Kali began.

A small orange fish appeared next to Wattpheasant, sparks flying off of its body as it swam in the air. [ATK: 300]

"Now, I tune the level three Wattberyx to the level four Wattpheasant!" Kali declared.

"Wait!" Michael called. But it was too late. Mura didn't say anything, but he had a grin on his face.

"The sky darkens and the winds blow, thunder roars and lightning flashes! Descend from the storm! Synchro Summon, Watthydra!" Kali announced.

A bolt of lightning struck the field, and began to transform. It slowly became the multi-headed beast that was the strongest of all the Watt monster. [ATK: 1500] Mura began to laugh, and Asterisk let out a mechanical roar. Kali took a step back nervously as wind began to swirl around Asterisk, making it look a tornado.

"Whenever a Synchro monster is special summoned, the summoner takes 1000 points of damage! Go, Asterisk! Nemesis Tornado!" Mura shouted, pointing towards the blonde girl.

There was a pulse of energy from inside the artificial tornado, which then flew forward and struck the Watt duelist, easily bowling her over and taking out a decent amount of life points in the process.

**[Michael: 4950 + Kali: 5200 / Mura: 15700]**

"Are you okay?" Michael asked.

"Yeah… yeah, I'm fine." Kali panted.

"I was a bit too late to stop you. But this deck punishes Synchro summoning." The brown-haired duelist said, scratching the back of his neck.

"II still probably would've summoned it anyway," Kali admitted. "It's the best thing I have to deal with the current situation. It'll deal with it even better after I equip it with Wattcube, which I'll then immediately send to the graveyard to give Watthydra an extra 1000 attack points."

Sparks began to fly off of the Watt monster at an increased rate, and the monsters skin took on a yellow hue. [ATK: 1500 - 2500]

"Now, Watthydra attacks you directly!" Kali declared.

The Watt monster opened all of its mouths simultaneously and fired off several streams of electric energy, all which curved around Mura's monsters and struck the Meklord duelist's duel disk.

**[Michael: 4950 + Kali: 5200 / Mura: 13200]**

"Now, for Watthydra's effect. I can remove one card from my deck from play, and then I get to add it to my hand in two turns." Kali explained as she slid a card out of her deck. "To finish off my turn, I'll activate Burden of the Mighty, so that all of your monsters lose 100 attack points for each level they have."

A dark red aura briefly formed over all of Mura's monsters. Army of Skiel began to hover closer to the ground [ATK: 1800 - 1400] and Army of Wisel hunched over while Army of Granel lowered his cannons to the ground. [ATK: 2100 - 1700] [ATK: 1900 - 1500]

"My turn then. I summon Ally of Justice Thousand Arms." Michael smirked. "Then, I activate DNA Transplant, making all monsters Light. So thanks to Kali, Thousand Arms can take down all over your monsters in one go."

Thousand Arms appeared on the field, and it's normally dark armor becoming a bright gold. [ATK: 1700] Similar, the armors of all of the Meklord Army monsters took on a yellow hue as their attribute changed.

"You didn't think it would be that easy, did you?" Mura laughed. "Trap card, Mektimed Blast. I select one Meklord monster I control and one card you control, and then both of them are destroyed. I select Asterisk!"

Asterisk flew forward and slammed into the trap card, a large explosion enveloping them both. To Michael's surprise, while the hue of their armor had returned to normal, the attack strength of the Meklord Army monsters hadn't gone down. But then he saw it. A tall, white robot standing behind Mura that looked a more advanced version of the Meklord Army of Wisel. It had a hole in its chest shaped like an infinity symbol, and inside of it was a glowing orb with several rings spinning around it. [ATK: 2500 - 2400]

"Since a card I control was destroyed by a card effect, I can special summon Meklord Emperor Wisel from my hand." Mura explained. "Since he's a level one monster, your Burden of the Mighty is no inconvenience to him."

"Since none of your monsters are Light anymore… I'll just set one card face-down and end my turn." Michael said quietly.

"Hehe. My turn! Draw! I activate Machine Assembly Line, granting all of my Machine-type monsters 200 extra attack points!" Mura began.

The continuous spell card appeared on the field, and it granted all of Mura's monsters some additional strength. First was Wisel [ATK: 2400 - 2600], then Army of Skiel [ATK: 1400 - 1600], Army of Granel was next [ATK: 1500 - 1700] and finally, the miniature version of Wisel [ATK: 1700 - 1900]

"Now… for the best part!" Mura said, grinning madly. "Wisel! Absorb her Synchro monster!"

"Aghh… I really didn't want one of these to show up…" Michael groaned.

Strands of energy shot out from Wisel's core and wrapped around Watthydra, who tried to break free. But the Watt monster was able to do no such thing, and was transformed into an orb of light which the energy strands pulled back into Wisel's core. Wisel pulsed with energy, and its armor began to emit sparks. [ATK: 2600 - 4100]

"It… absorbed Watthydra?" Kali asked, stunned that a level one monster could have such a powerful effect.

"Synchro summoning… it's something almost every deck uses. That's why I use these monsters. It's also why Jehan and Alyssa are such a bother for me to fight, as they generally don't bother with Synchro monsters. But against people like you, this deck is an absolute nightmare." Mura chuckled.

"She used to use Ice Barriers…" Jared said quietly.

"People change. Now… Wisel, attack her directly!" Mura ordered.

"I activate my trap card, Wattkeeper! Using its effect, I'll special summon the Wattdragonfly from my graveyard in defense mode!" Kali countered.

The electric dragonfly appeared, its body becoming a darker blue color because it was in defense mode. [DEF: 100]

"As if that'll stop me. Wisel will attack that instead, and Army of Wisel will grant him piercing! Suffer at the hands of your Synchro monster!" Mura shouted.

Wisel raised one arm that had a blade on it, and that blade immediately became charged with electricity. A pulse of energy emitted from Wisel as the Meklord charged forward, stabbing its blade through Wattdragonfly and into the ground, the resulting shockwave pushing knocking Kali back.

**[Michael: 4950 + Kali: 1200 / Mura: 13200]**

"Using Wattdragonfly's effect, I'll special summon another Wattdragonfly from my deck in defense position!" Kali announced, quickly recovering from the attack. Michael was worried that she might be growing accustomed to being bowled over by attacks like that.

Another Wattdragonfly appeared in place of the first one, and when Wisel returned to Mura's field it was as if nothing had changed, aside from Kali's life points of course. [DEF: 100]

"Even if I use all three of my attacks against you, I can't finish you off this turn… So in that case, Army of Skiel will attack Thousand Arms." Mura said after a moment.

"But it's weaker..." Tasha whispered.

"Since Thousand Arms isn't battling a Light monster… it's destroyed before damage calculation." Michael said quietly as his monsters hologram shattered before Army of Skiel would even raise its weapons.

"Army of Wisel and Army of Granel will attack you directly!" Mura continued.

The monsters pulsed with energy. Army of Wisel attacked first, running forward and slashing Michael across the chest with its blade, and Army of Granel fired two blasts of energy that made his body feel like it was on fire.

**[Michael: 1350 + Kali: 1200 / Mura: 13200]**

"Hmph… Even though it's two against one, the gap between our respective life points is just above 10000. What a shame, I thought this would be more difficult. Before I end my turn, I activate Shard of Greed." Mura sighed.

"He really is strong…" Kali whispered.

"He's been in control of this match the whole time. Even though his hand is under a greater strain since he's alone, he's been fending us off with ease." Michael grimaced.

"We… still have to try, at least." Kali said softly as she drew for her turn. "I activate The Shallow Grave. We each special summon a monster from our graveyard in face-down defense position. After that I'll… end my turn." Kali said. A reversed card appeared in front of all the duelists, and Michael frowned guessing that Mura's was probably another Meklord Army of Skiel.

"Draw…" Michael said after several moments. But he didn't draw. He simply stared at his deck for several moments.

"Have you realized the futility in all of this?" Mura said with an amused smile. "The world WILL be reborn. Even if you do manage to beat me, there's little you could do against Lord Rugal."

"…Maybe it'll just work out for the best somehow." Michael chuckled, finally drawing. "…Heh. I figured out how to bring down your entire army."

"What was that?" Mura asked, his eyes narrowing.

"First, I activate Call of the Haunted to bring back Ally of Justice Quarantine, then I'll flip Thousand Arms, and finally I'll summon Unknown Synchron." Michael began.

Thousand Arms [ATK: 1700] and Quarantine [ATK: 1700] reappeared on the field, and in between them appeared a small circular metal ball with a single red eye and two yellow antenna. [ATK: 0]

"Level 9… Field Marshal… but that can't help you against Wisel…" Mura mumbled, trying to work out where this was going.

"Can't it? I tune the level one Unknown Synchron to the level four Ally of Justice Quarantine and the level four Ally of Justice Thousand Arms!" Michael called, three monsters rising up into the air behind him. "The light that hides in the shadows… that too must be eliminated! Show those cowards your true strength! Synchro Summon! Illuminate, Ally of Justice Field Marshal!"

A humanoid white and grey robot with a lower body that gave off a radiant golden glow appeared on the field. It had numerous small lights on its body, illuminating the dark corners of Fortissimo. [ATK: 2900]

"Wisel can absorb more than one Synchro monster. Next turn, he'll simply take Field Marshal and boost his strength up to 7000." Mura smirked.

"I'm not done. I activate Overclock! By paying 1000 life points, Field Marshal can attack all of your monsters." Michael said, wincing as a red aura surrounded him.

**[Michael: 350 + Kali: 1200 / Mura: 13200]**

"I don't see the point in any of this! Field Marshal HAS to attack each of my monsters! Even without a supporting army, you'll still lose the moment you attack Wisel!" Mura shouted.

"I still have a card to play." Michael smirked, holding up a card for Mura to see.

"N-No…!" Instantly the color drained from the Meklord duelist's face. He glanced at his field and then at Field Marshal, and then finally at the ground.

"Well, what card is it?" Everest demanded, not being able to see the card.

"I activate Swords of Concealing Light! All of your monsters are changed into face-down defense position!" Michael announced. He was so intent on getting this play off, he didn't hear the elevator ding behind him.

A set of four black swords with golden edges fell from the sky and slammed into the ground around Mura's monsters. Waves of purple energy ran across the ground, and the four Meklord monsters became reversed cards. When Wisel disappeared, the ethereal form of Watthydra flew across the field and into Kali's duel disk.

"None of your Meklord monsters have enough defense to withstand an attack from my monster Go, Field Marshal! Illuminate and exterminate!" Michael called, pointing forwards the reversed cards.

Field Marshal wrapped its arms around its body and hunched over. The golden light given off by its body intensified, and when the Ally of Justice pulled its arms back several beams of light flew across the field. The beams pierced all five of the reversed cards and destroyed them instantly.

"Tch… but I won't be left defenseless! Two Army of Skiel's were destroyed, so I get two more Meklord Army monsters!" Mura growled.

"Actually, you don't." Michael smirked. "The effects of effect monsters destroyed in battle with a monster enhanced with Overclock aren't activated."

"Also, since Field Marshal destroyed five face-down defense position monsters, I get to draw five cards." Michael smiled, replenishing his hand.

"Since five Machine-type monsters were destroyed by battle, Machine Assembly Line gets 2 counters for each, for a grand total of 10." Mura mumbled.

"I set one card face-down and end my turn." Michael finished.

"Why am I not surprised that this happened?"

Everyone looked over in the direction of the elevator where the former King, Cain, was standing. He was leaning against the wall with an amused expression on his face.

"I come to give you some good news, and apparently I arrived just in time to watch you lose your entire field. Aside from this… charming place." Cain said, gesturing to the large structure at the back of the room.

"Good news?" Mura asked.

"Yeah. It's started." Cain said.

"What's started?" Everest asked.

"The barrier between the two worlds is starting to crumble. Soon, we can reset the world." Cain explained.

"…Good." Mura said. He turned his attention back to the duel. "Draw. Shard of Greed gains one counter. I summon Meklord Army of Granel!"

Another Army of Granel appeared on the field, but almost instantaneously a bolt of lightning shot down from the sky and destroyed it. Mura looked puzzled and then looked at his opponents for an explanation.

"I activated my trap card: Wattcancel. By discarding a Watt monster from my hand, I can negate the normal or special summon of a monster and destroy it." Kali explained as she slid Watthopper into her graveyard.

"I end my turn." Mura grumbled.

"Draw! Now, since it's been two turns since Watthydra attacked, I can add Monster Reborn to my hand. But I'll save that for later. I summon Wattcobra, and I'm changing my Wattdragonflies into attack position." Kali said.

The electric snake appeared next to Wattdragonfly, staring silently at the defenseless Mura. [ATK: 1000] The blue dragonfly moved itself into attack position, and the reversed card on Kali's field flipped over revealing an identical Wattdragonfly. [ATK: 900]

"Then all three monsters attack you directly!" Kali ordered.

The three Watt monsters charged forward as a group, each of them slamming into the Meklord duelist in turn. But he didn't seem affected in any way.

**[Michael: 350 + Kali: 1200 / Mura: 10400]**

"I'll use Wattcobra's effect to add Wattbetta to my hand, and on that note I'll end my turn." Kali announced.

"I'm up. I summon Ally of Justice Unlimiter, who I'll immediately tribute to double Field Marshal's attack until the End Phase." Michael smirked.

Unlimiter appeared for a few brief moments, before it dissembled itself into various pieces which attached themselves onto Field Marshal's body, doubling the monsters already respectable attack. [ATK: 2900 - 5800]

"Field Marshal attacks directly." Michael said simply.

Field Marshal began to glow brighter, and then a pulse of energy passed over everyone in the room. Field Marshal fired off several beams of light, and Mura's eyes widened seconds before the attack slammed into him, knocking him down to the ground.

**[Michael: 350 + Kali: 1200 / Mura: 4600]**

"Heh, they're really narrowed the gap." Everest grinned.

"Not bad." Demetri said, commenting for the first time in a while.

"I'll play one card face-down, and then I'll pass it off to you." The Ally of Justice duelist said.

"Draw. Shard of Greed gains another counter. Then I'll send it to the graveyard to draw two cards. Then I'll use Pot of Avarice, shuffling two Army of Skiels, Army of Granel, Army of Wisel and Emperor Wisel back into my deck to draw two more cards." Mura said as he recovered from the attack, attempting to replenish his hand.

"Well? Did you get all the pieces you need?" Cain demanded.

"…Yep." Mura chuckled.

"Pieces?" Michael asked.

"Let me show you. From my hand I send Meklord Emperor Granel, Meklord Emperor Skiel, and Army of Wisel to the graveyard. This lets me summon the strongest of all Meklord monsters. Arise, Meklord Astro Mekanikle!" Mura smiled.

The entire room rumbled as a colossal monster rose up from the ground in front of Mura. It was white and gold, and had four cores visible in its body: One in each shoulder, one in its abdomen, and one final red one in its chest. One arm was a large fist, and the other was a giant cannon. The monster reached the ceiling of the room, and it gave off such a strong pulse of energy that it actually pushed everyone back a few steps. Unfortunately, Burden of the Mighty was still activate and it lost a fair bit of attack points, however it did regain a small amount thanks to Machine Assembly Line. [ATK: 4000 - 2800 - 3000]

"Let me guess, it can absorb a Synchro monster as well?" Michael asked.

"Bingo. So say good-bye to Field Marshal." Mura smirked.

Michael grimaced as his only monster taken and absorbed by the gigantic foe they now had to face. But he wasn't terribly worried. He knew he could get through this turn, and then Kali could possibly bring his life points down to 0 depending on her draw. [ATK: 3000 - 5900]

"Now, Meklord Astro Mekanikle attacks you directly, Michael!" Mura declared.

"Good choice." Cain nodded. Michael glanced over in Cain's direction, and then quickly turned back to the battle and tapped a button on his duel disk.

"I activate my Hallowed Life Barrier, discarding one card to prevent any damage to me this turn." Michael said calmly.

Mura frowned as the Meklord Astro fired off a large beam of energy towards Michael, only to have a barrier surround and save him.

"I set one and end." Mura sighed.

"My turn! First, I'll use Monster Reborn to bring back Watthydra! Then, I summon Wattbetta, and then I'll tune my level two Wattbetta to my two level two Wattdragonflies!" Kali called as Wattbetta began two synchro gates and the Dragonflies became four stars. "Bypass all barriers; strike the foe at their core! Let its thundering roar envelop you! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Wattchimera!"

Two bolts of lightning struck the ground on either side of Wattcobra and slowly, they formed into monsters. On the left was the multi-headed Watthydra [ATK: 1500] and on the right was the hybrid of several other creatures, Wattchimera [ATK: 1400].

"I'll equip Watthydra with Black Pendant to give it 500 more attack points, and then all three of my Watt monsters will attack you directly!" Kali commanded.

A small black necklace appeared around the Hydra's neck, upping its attack strength [ATK: 1500 - 2000]. Then, in unison the three monsters all shot streams of electricity towards Mura's side of the field. The three streams combined into one large one and struck the Meklord duelist square in the chest and dropped his life points to an amount even lower than Michael's.

**[Michael: 350 + Kali: 1200 / Mura: 200]**

"I'll use Watthydra's effect to remove Mirror Force for two turns, and then Wattcobra's effect to add another Wattcobra to my hand." Kali said. "Your turn."

"Draw. You know, Cain over there gave something away. You could've wiped out Kali, who can attack you directly. But you went for me instead. I'm guessing that the only reason you did that was because you were afraid of something. I'm guessing that means Mekanikle is a light monster, and what you were afraid of was this. Go, Core Destroyer!" Michael shouted, slamming the card onto his duel disk.

Core Destroyer appeared silently on the field, its one red eye locking onto the spinning core inside of Mekanikle, devising a strategy on how to take the colossal monster down. [ATK: 1200]

"Good going, Cain." Mura moaned.

"You have the strongest of all Meklords, shouldn't you be able to at least fend off a puny monster like that?" Cain teased.

"Core Destroyer, attack Mekanikle!" Michael ordered.

"I activate Meklord Factory! Since you attacked a Meklord monster, I destroy the attacking monster and add one Meklord from my graveyard to my hand. I'll add back Army of Wisel." Mura countered.

Core Destroyer charged forward, and then fell to pieces before it could reach Mekanikle. Michael frowned as he was once again defenseless, but he had no choice but to end his turn.

"Draw, I-"

"I activate Fiendish Chain, negating Mekanikle's effect and preventing it from attack!" Kali interrupted. Chains shot out from the ground and wrapped themselves around the gigantic creature's limbs, immobilizing it.

"Tch. I summon Army of Skiel, and then use the effect of my Mobile Fortress to special summon Army of Wisel." Mura growled.

Two hatches opened on the large structure and another copy of the blue hummingbird and the white humanoid soldier appeared, their power fluctuating briefly due to the various cards on the field. [ATK: 1200 - 1400] [ATK: 1800]

"Sadly, that's not enough. I won't be able to beat you and your Watts this turn." Mura mumbled, looking at Kali. "So… I'm forced to do this. I send Machine Assembly Line and its 10 counters to the graveyard, to special summon one Machine-type monster from my graveyard who has a level that is less than or equal to the number of counters that were on Machine Assembly Line. Return to the field, Meklord Astro Dragon Asterisk!"

The continuous spell card disappeared, being replace by the long, snake-like form of the Meklord Astro Dragon. But something different happened this time. Stands of energy shot out of its core and wrapped themselves around Army of Wisel, Army of Skiel and Mekankile. The three monsters didn't struggle as they were turned into orbs of light that were then drawn into the monsters core. [ATK: ? - 6000]

"When Asterisk is special summoned, I can send any number of Meklord monsters to the graveyard to have it gain attacks points equal to the combined total of the attack of the monsters I sent. Your Burden of the Mighty may cost him 1000 attack points, but 6000 is more than enough to do what I need done. Now, Asterisk! Attack Watthydra and wipe out her life points! Infinity Nemesis Stream!"

Asterisk's core became orange in color and the monster gave off a pulse of energy only slightly weaker than Mekanikle had. After a few brief moments of charging, it fired a power laser towards the Synchro monster. It hit it head on destroyed it, along with every other monster on Kali's field and sending the Watt duelist herself careening backwards.

**[Michael: 350 + Kali: 0 / Mura: 200]**

"That's one down." Mura smiled.

"Are you okay?" Tasha asked, moving over to the downed girl.

"This takes a lot of you… I'm just gonna rest here for a minute or two…" Kali mumbled, closing her eyes.

"She could be hurt pretty badly." Everest noted, rubbing his chin. "I think if it's possible, she sit any other matches out."

"Yeah." Travis nodded.

"Really? What a pity. I'm bored, and thought that a match against your group would be a great way to pass them time before this whole ordeal is sorted out." Cain sighed.

"One fight after another… I'll never get to see Alyssa at this rate…" Jared said quietly.

"Oh my god, I've heard you were always trying to get close to her. Just go on ahead then. Maybe it'll finally get through your skull that she isn't interested in you. Seriously, go on. I won't stop you." Cain said mockingly, gesturing towards the elevator. Much to his surprise, and the surprise of everyone else, Jared actually ran into the elevator.

"…Jared?" Michael asked, surprised that his friend would consider abandoning him at this point.

"…Sorry." Jared said, not making eye contact. The elevator closed seconds later and he was gone.

"Huh. That crazy guy actually went for it." Cain chuckled.

"You just let someone get closer to Lord Rugal, what were you thinking?" Mura growled.

"Jehan _and_ Alyssa are up there. I really don't think he can beat both of them." Cain reminded him.

"Hmph. Well Michael, the friend you tried to find for so long has just abandoned you in a desperate attempt to get with a girl who hasn't shown any interest in him during her stay with us." Mura sighed. "You sure know how to pick friends."

"…Well, maybe he just wanted to see her again before the world changes. I know I'd want to see my loved ones before then." Michael shrugged.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night." Mura said, shaking his head in disapproval.

"I'm still going to try and stop Rugal though; I just have to get past you." Said the Ally of Justice duelist.

"I told you that it's already started. It won't be much longer now." Cain announced.

"That means I just can't waste any more time, I'll end it here and now! Draw!" Michael shouted.

"Here and now? If you special summon a Synchro monster, you'll take 1000 points of damage. Can you really get over the 6000 attack points of Asterisk without a Synchro monster?" Mura challenged.

"Let's find out! I activate Scroll of Bewitchment, changing Meklord Astro Dragon Asterisk's attribute to Light!" Michael began. "Then, I summon Black Salvo and use his effect to special summon Ally of Justice Reverse Break from my graveyard, and then Inferno Reckless Summon to summon two more from my deck!"

Asterisk's armor became more yellow in color, and a small black bomb with a smiling face and a short fuse appeared [ATK: 100] and then next to it appeared three copies of Ally of Justice Reverse Break. The monsters were low to the ground and had two large wheels on either side of their torsos. They each had two spinning silver blades at the end of their arms and a large, green drill above their green eyes. [ATK: 1200]

"Asterisk can't be special summoned from the deck…" Mura mumbled. "But these four monsters can't beat my Meklord, and you can't even Synchro summon!"

"Who said I was going to Synchro summon? I'm going to use Double Summon to tribute Black Salvo and summon Ally of Justice Rudra." Michael smirked.

Black Salvo disappeared, and was replaced with the larger, silver and purple form of Ally of Justice Rudra. It had an odd device on its back that looked like Cyclone Creator's wings, and streams of golden energy leaked out of its clawed hands. [ATK: 1900]

"Rudra… why?" Mura asked quietly.

"I have one last card to play… Final Resistance! I select one card you control, and then I can send any number of monsters I control to the graveyard to reduce your monsters attack points by the combined attack of all monsters I send to the graveyard this way. But, if your monster loses 2000 or more attack points because of this effect, I take damage equal to the attack points of all the monsters I sent to the graveyard at the end of the Battle Phase. I'll send my three Reverse Breaks to the graveyard." Michael explained.

The three Reverse Breaks all ran forward, leaping into the air and slamming into Asterisk… where they all shattered into holographic pieces. Asterisk hovered weakly for moment, and then fell onto the ground, the light of its core growing dim. [ATK: 6000 - 2400]

"So… it's come to this…" Mura said quietly.

"It was a hard-fought battle… Mura, you're a heck of a duelist." Michael said. Mura smiled weakly. "But it's over. Rudra attacks Meklord Astro Dragon Asterisk!" Michael commanded. "When Rudra battles a light monster, he gains 700 more attack points!"

Rudra ran forward, long strands of energy extended from each claw on its hand. Energy seemed to be leaking out of Asterisk, boosting the power of the Ally of Justice. [ATK: 1900 - 2600] With a ferocious cry, the mechanical monster leapt into the air and slashed its claws downward, cleanly cutting the Meklord Astro Dragon into several sections. With a final, weak cry, Asterisk's head fell to the ground and exploded.

**[Michael: 350 + Kali: 0 / Mura: 0]**

When the smoke cleared and Mura was simply sitting on the ground, leaning back on his hands and staring at the ceiling. Slowly, Fortissimo disappeared and the group was returned to the large, vacant room they had previously been in.

"Your weaker monsters helped you take down Asterisk… not only that, you used the Ally of Justice everyone deemed to be 'the worst'…" Mura said quietly. "I'll give you your chance. Take this, and go. I think… I can be content with whichever way the world goes now."

"This is…" Michael said, furrowing his brow as he took the stack of cards Mura was holding out. He fanned them out, and was surprised to see a familiar card: Genex Controller.

"…My Genex deck." Michael smiled.

"Take it. Go on now. Do what you have to." Mura said, gesturing to the door behind him. Mura's breath caught in his throat and he looked down at his hand. His eyes went wide as slowly, his fingertips turned to dust. He looked up, seeing Cain walking towards him with a Disappear trap card in hand. "Cain…" Were the last words the black-haired duelist said, before the rest of his body was turned to dust.

"…Mura…" Michael said, clenching a fist and spinning around to face Cain.

"How sad, you won't get to see any world now. We have no use for traitors or losers, and both you and Mura fit that category. Time for you to disappear as well!" Cain laughed, pointing the card in Michael's direction.

"Oh no you don't!" Everest shouted, running forward and checking Cain to the ground. "You go on! We can deal with this guy!"

"But…"

"No buts! We can handle this." Travis smiled. "We'll send Kali over your way if she recovers before we're done here. Just go on for now."

"Thank you…" Michael said. With a quick glance at the dust pile that had briefly been his comrade, Michael turned and ran into the stairwell, leaving the others to deal with Cain. _Don't do anything crazy, guys… _Michael thought as he started running up the stairs.

_On the roof…_

Jehan, Alyssa and Rugal all turned to face the new arrival. Jehan chuckled, Rugal remained expressionless and Alyssa groaned.

"You again?" Alyssa asked, shaking her head. "Why can't you just leave me alone? Which idiot let you even get up here?"

"Alyssa… I've realized something about myself..." Jared said as he moved forward. He paused and took a long look at the blue-haired girl. He closed his eyes and then took a deep breath. "What I fell in love with… isn't there anymore."

"You came all the way up here to say that?" Alyssa asked.

"No… now that I've accepted that you… that you've really changed from the girl I knew, nothing is holding me back from stopping you!" Jared declared, activating his duel disk.

"Stop us, eh? Fat chance!" Jehan sneered, activating his own duel disk.

"…No, Jehan. I'll do this by myself." Alyssa said quietly.

"Feh, I never get any fun." Jehan huffed, crossing his arms.

"Well… if you're serious about this, then show me!" Alyssa smirked.

"Heh, all these duels do is speed everything up. The outcome doesn't matter anymore. Soon, everything will change." Rugal chuckled, turning his back on Alyssa and staring down at the chaos taking place in the city.

* * *

><p>Final Resistance<p>

Normal Spell Card

Select one face-up monster your opponent controls. Send any number of face-up monsters you control to the graveyard to reduce the attack of the selected monster by the combined attack of the sent monsters. If a monster loses more than 2000 life points through this cards effect, you take damage equal to the combined attack of all monsters sent to the graveyard at the end of the Battle Phase.

* * *

><p>I didn't actually lose interest again, this one just... took awhile. ^^; This duel was a nightmare to plan out, and had to be rewritten completely at one point. Also I had to make a custom card since the one I was originally going to use, Brave Attack, required all the monsters to be in attack position. I've been trying to stray away from custom cards, but I really, really didn't want to rewrite the last bit of this duel and try to find a new card that could work. Because honestly, I'm very satisfied with this duel.<p>

School actually started up again for me last week, so I've been focusing on that. But I will still be working to finish this, parts just may take a while longer. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed reading and I'll see you next time!


	24. Chapter 24: Next To Be Lost

"Feh! You gang of losers…" Cain growled as he scrambled to his feet.

"Why are you doing this Cain?" Everest demanded.

"Why? Why the hell not? You've seen firsthand what I can do with this power! When Reynar found me, all he did was caution me against using it. But now that I've joined up with these guys, they let me do whatever I want!" Cain laughed. "Plus, they helped me revamp my deck even more."

"You're one twisted guy…" Travis muttered.

"If I was as stupid as Mura was, I'd say I'd take you all on! But I haven't the patience for that. Instead, if we're doing this, it's a battle royale." Cain said.

"I say we take we accept. After all, we can just gang up on him." Tasha whispered to Demetri, who nodded slowly. Demetri nudged Everest and passed the information on.

"Eh? Well… if you say so…" Everest said, scratching his chin. "We accept."

"I'll pass. My deck got looted for cards." Travis sighed.

"You three are fine enough. Now, let's not dilly-dally." Cain smirked as he activated his duel disk, the other three doing the same.

"Duel!"

**[Cain: 8000 / Everest: 8000 / Tasha: 8000 / Demetri: 8000]**

"Since I orchestrated this, I'll be going first! I activate the field spell Roulette Field!" Cain declared.

The room around them changed, the lights growing dim and a circular surface appearing under each duelists feet. Other than that, the room remained unchanged.

"Then, I activate Field Barrier to protect my field spell. That'll be all." Cain finished.

"What does this place do?" Everest asked.

"Well, we're all assigned a number. I'm one, you're two, she's three, and Mr. Silent over there is four. Whenever we declare an attack, we roll a die. Whichever number it lands on is who we attack. But if we get an invalid number, like five, six, or whatever number the attacker themself has, the die is re-rolled." Cain explained.

"Damn it… so we can't focus all of our efforts on him…" Everest grumbled, gritting his teeth.

"I told you, I'm not as stupid as Mura was." Cain smiled. "Anyway, continue on with your turn."

"Well, if it's only when I attack than that won't be a problem yet," Everest smirked. "I summon Laval Magma Cannoneer!"

A hulking purple monster with steel armor on its torso and shoulders appeared. Mounted on its shoulders were two cannons that very closely resembled sideways volcanoes. [ATK: 1700]

"Now, I'll use Magma Cannoneer's effect. By discarding a Fire monster from my hand, I can deal 500 points of damage to you. I can use this effect twice, so I'll discard Laval Lady of the Burning Lake and Laval Volcano Handmaiden to deal 1000 damage."

The two cannons and Magma Cannoneer's back began to rumble, and then they spewed forth streams of lava which washed over Cain, who merely stood there with an amused expression as his life points burnt away.

**[Cain: 7000 / Everest: 8000 / Tasha: 8000 / Demetri: 8000]**

"Also, when Handmaiden is sent to the graveyard while I have another Laval in there, I can send another Laval from my deck to the graveyard. I'll send a second Handmaiden, who will let me send a third Handmaiden, who will let me send a Magma Cannoneer." Everest explained, rapidly filling up his graveyard. "I'll set one card and end my turn there."

"I'm up. I'll set a monster card and another card, and that'll be all." Tasha said.

"I'll summon Malice Doll of Demise, and then set two cards face-down." Demetri said quickly.

The possessed doll appeared, its mouth turned up in a horrifying grin as its axe swung slowly by its side. [ATK: 1700]

"Go." The black-haired duelist finished.

"Draw! I'll activate Contract with the Dark Master! I'll send Ritual Raven to the graveyard as a tribute, and thanks to its effect if Ritual Raven is being used for the summon of a Dark Ritual monster, it can be treated as the entire tribute. Now…" Cain grinned, raising one card high into air. "Great lord of the shadows, I beseech you to rise again! Use your power to lead this world to ruin! Ritual Summon! Arise, and slay the very gods themselves! Dark Master - Zorc!"

Sickly green energy began to pour out of the center of the room. A small black bird with two gold plates displaying smiling faces on either side of its torso appeared, circling the area from which the energy was pouring out. A monstrous roar shook the room as a hand reached out from the mass of energy and grabbed the raven, pulling the struggling creature down to the green mass. There was a pulse of energy which exploded outward, sending the green energy flying into the air and obscuring the duelist's vision. When it began to settle, a demonic creature stood in front of Cain, its red wings spread wide and green energy radiating from its body. [ATK: 2800]

"Now, for Zorc's effect!" Cain declared. A virtual dice fell from the sky, and after rolling around a bit it became still, the result being a 2.

"A two…?" Tasha asked.

"Zorc's effect is based on whatever number I roll. A six means all of my monsters are destroyed. A three, four, or five means I can destroy one monster on my opponent's side of the field, and a one or two…" Cain paused, grinning madly. "Means all monsters my opponent controls are destroyed!"

Zorc threw back his head roared, green energy surging up around him. It spread out across the field, its tendrils wrapping around the three monsters his opponent controlled and pulling them down into the energy, from which they did not resurface. However, a tiny teal bird appeared on Tasha's side of the field. [DEF: 400]

"When Gulldo is sent from the field to the graveyard, I get a level two or lower Gusto monster, like Gusto Egul, from my deck." Tasha explained.

"Don't care. Next, I summon Manju of the Ten Thousand Hands!" Cain declared.

A grey creature with a fierce expression on its face appeared next to Zorc. The monster didn't even look like it had a proper body; it just looked like its head sat on a mass of arms. [ATK: 1400]

"When Manju is normal or flip summoned, I can add a Ritual spell to my hand. I'll add Advanced Ritual Art, and then proceed to the Battle Phase. Now, let's see which of you gets to feel Zorc's wrath." Cain smirked.

The circles below each of the duelists began to light up in turn, as if a roulette was spinning. It began to slow down, and eventually Demetri found himself on the only lit up panel. Zorc raised a hand and sent a wave of energy towards the black-haired duelist, who endured it nicely.

**[Cain: 7000 / Everest: 8000 / Tasha: 8000 / Demetri: 5300]**

"Manju is up next!" Cain continued.

Again, the lights began to flash, but it stopped on an unoccupied space. They started up again, and Everest grimaced when it stopped on him. Manju rocketed forward and delivered a series of punches to the Security Officer with its multitude of hands.

**[Cain: 7000 / Everest: 6600 / Tasha: 8000 / Demetri: 5300]**

"That'll be all." Cain finished.

"My move. I activate Fissure to destroy one of my opponent's monsters that has the lowest attack. I pick you Cain, so that mean Manju is a goner." The large man smirked as a crevice formed under Manju, the monster falling into it with the crevice closing up immediately afterwards. "I set one monster, and end it there.

"During your End Phase, I'll use Fires of Doomsday to get two Doomsday tokens." Demetri said quickly.

In front of him appeared two swirling masses of black flames, which simply hovered in the air. [DEF: 0]

"Draw. I'll summon Musto, Oracle of Gusto. Then, I'll tune the level one Gusto Egul to the level four Musto!" Tasha declared. "Glorious green wings will take to the sky once more, and bring about the winds of change! Synchro Summon! Take flight, Daigusto Gulldos!"

A larger, more mature version of Gusto Gulldo appeared, hovering in the air in front of Tasha. On its back was Winda, Priestess of Gusto, who appeared to be controlling the larger monster. [ATK: 2200]

"Now, for Daigusto Gulldos' effect! I shuffle Egul and Gulldo from my graveyard into my deck to destroy one monster you control!" Tasha smirked.

Daigusto Gulldos began to flap its wings, whipping up a storm below Zorc which sent the Dark Master spiraling up into the air, where its hologram shattered. Cain didn't seem particularly annoyed by this though.

"It's still only a 1-in-3 chance of hitting me." He reminded her.

"Well, I'll have to take that chance! Gulldos attacks!" Tasha ordered.

The lights once again began to flash, and much to Tasha's relief Cain's was the one that remained lit. Gulldos flew forward, smashing right into the Ritual duelist's chest.

**[Cain: 4800 / Everest: 6600 / Tasha: 8000 / Demetri: 5300]**

"I'll set two cards face-down and end." Tasha smirked.

"I tribute both my tokens to summon Diabolos, King of the Abyss!" Demetri called.

The two tokens disappeared, being replaced by a much larger black dragon. The dragon howled and leaned its body forward, strands of drool hanging out of its mouth. [ATK: 2800]

"Diabolos attacks!" Demetri continued.

The lights flashed, and Everest found himself the target of another target. Thankfully, his monster was in defense mode so no damage was taken. Not only that, Demetri noticed it was another Laval Lady of the Burning Lake so the Laval duelist could get rid of any pesky cards his opponent set.

"Set one. End. I get to look at the top card of your deck before you draw." Demetri finished. A hologram of the card Cain was about to draw appeared in front of him, and the black-haired duelist shook his head. "That goes to the bottom."

"Not a problem. Draw! I activate Advanced Ritual Art, which lets me send normal monsters from my deck to the graveyard as tributes for a Ritual monster. I send Cosmo Queen from my deck to my graveyard to summon this card…" Cain smirked. "As the world collapses, the king of the end will rise again! Crush everything that remains standing! Ritual Summon! Rise, and seal the fate of this doomed world! Demise, King of Armageddon!

Purple fire bathed the field, and from them rose a hulking figure in black and grey armor with a skull-like head. The evil king chuckled and raised its shoulders, drawing some attention to the large axe it held in its hands. [ATK: 2400]

"Now, for Demise's effect! At the cost of 2000 life points, every other card on the field is destroyed!" Cain laughed as a red aura surrounded him.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 6600 / Tasha: 8000 / Demetri: 5300]**

Demise raised his axe high into there and then brought it crashing down into the ground, purple flames erupting from the ground and enveloping every other card on the field, burning them to ashes while the evil king laughed.

"Field Barrier protects Roulette Field. Now, let's see which of you lucky people get to face off against Demise." Cain smirked as the panels began to light up again, this time stopping on Tasha. Demise pulsed with energy and Tasha's eyes widened as the monster slashed its axe across her chest.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 6600 / Tasha: 5600 / Demetri: 5300]**

"Are you alright?" Travis asked.

"Y-Yeah..." Tasha said after a moment. She looked down at her chest to see that thankfully, the cut hadn't broken the skin.

"Well, that'll be all from me." Cain finished.

"Draw! …I end." Everest sighed.

"Draw… Oh, I can use this." Tasha smirked. "I'll use Miracle Synchro Fusion to fuse the Daigusto Gulldos and Musto, Oracle of Gusto in my graveyard together."

"I'm guessing this is one of the cards you took from that guy in the elevator?" Travis guessed.

"Yep. So is the monster I'm about to summon." Tasha smirked. "By using those two monsters as Fusion material, I can summon Ultimate Axon Kicker!"

A large being with a skeletal appearance and a snake-like lower body emerged from a portal behind Tasha. It had two sets of green and gold wings, and each of its bony hands ended in long, gold claws. [ATK: 2900]

"Now, Axon Kicker attacks!" Tasha continued.

Again the lights flashed, and Everest groaned loudly as he found himself the target of the attack. The monster puts its hands together and formed a ball of dark green energy in them, which it hurled at the Laval duelist.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 3700 / Tasha: 5600 / Demetri: 5300]**

"Sorry!" Tasha called.

"Yeah, it's fine…" Everest sighed.

"Anyway… you're up, Demetri." Tasha said..

"First, I use Dark Core. I discard one card to banish Demise. Then I summon Sangan and attack." Demetri said quickly.

A mass of black energy appeared around the evil king, enveloping him completely. When it dispersed, he was nowhere to be seen. A small furry brown creature with three eyes and a big smile appeared on Demetri's field. [ATK: 1000] The lights flashed, and Tasha was the target. The monster charged forward and was promptly destroyed by Ultimate Axon Kicker.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 3700 / Tasha: 5600 / Demetri: 3400]**

"When Ultimate Axon Kicker destroys a monster by battle and sends it to the graveyard, I gain life points equal to that monsters attack points." Tasha explained as a green glow surrounded her.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 3700 / Tasha: 6600 / Demetri: 3400]**

"I get to add one monster with 1500 or less attack points to my hands since Sangan was destroyed. Go." Demetri finished as he added a single card to his hand.

"Draw. I summon Senju of the Thousand Hands to add Ruin, Queen of Oblivion to my hand." The dirty blonde duelist began.

A monster resembling a golden statue appeared on Cain's field, glowing with a radiant light. Two of its hands were each holding a staff, while many others simply waved in the air behind the monster's back. [ATK: 1400]

"I'll use Trade-In to discard Ruin and draw two cards… Hehe. Then, I'll use Preparation of Rites. This'll let me add Garlandolf, King of Destruction from my deck to my hand and then add Advanced Ritual Art from my graveyard to my hand." Cain continued.

"Go ahead, summon Garlandolf. My monster can't be destroyed by card effects." Tasha bragged.

"Cute," Cain smirked. "But I already knew what your monster did. I'm going for something entirely different. I activate Shinato's Ark, and send the Senju from my field and Garlandolf from my hand to the graveyard as tributes."

"Not Shinato… it's strong enough to beat Tasha's monster…." Travis groaned.

"The monster which has transcended to a higher state of being shall return once again, heralding the end! Ritual Summon! The glorious being, Shinato, King of a Higher Plane!" Cain called.

A bright light shown above Cain and then slowly, an angelic being descended down onto the field. It looked almost mechanical with its purple skin. It was wearing a white robe, and had several sets of golden wings flapping behind it. [ATK: 3300]

"Now, Shinato! Attack!" Cain grinned.

Demetri was the target this time. Shinato pulsed with energy and fired a blast of purple light towards Demetri. It stuck the duelist head on and knocked him to the ground, where he didn't move.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 3700 / Tasha: 6600 / Demetri: 100]**

"Hey, are you okay?" Everest asked. He got no response.

"Well, if he can't move, he can't duel. But hey, maybe he'll come around soon enough to take his turn." Cain smirked. "Anyway, I'm done."

"Draw. Since I have three Laval monsters in my graveyard, I can special summon Laval Burner from my hand! Then, I summon Laval Forest Sprite!" Everest announced.

The molten orange beast appeared in front of Everest, bellowing loudly and pounding one of its large fists against the ground. [ATK: 2100] Next to it appeared a small girl with flowing red hair and a dark brown scarf and hood. [ATK: 300]

"Then, I tune the level two Forest Sprite to the level five Laval Burner!" Everest declared. "Beast of rock and flame, emerge from the depths of the earth and incinerate everything in your path! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Laval Stennon!"

Laval Stennon burst onto the field, growling at Cain and raising the large cannon on its arm in his direction. Then, thanks to Laval Forest Sprite's effect, the hulking behemoth gained 200 extra attack points of each Laval monster in the graveyard, and there were currently nine. [ATK: 2700 - 4500]

"He can point that at me all he wants but he actually has to hit me first." Cain smirked.

"I have to discard a card when I summon Stennon. But now, Stenno-" Everest hesitated as he remembered Demetri had both no monsters to protect himself. He stared at the black-haired duelist who was still motionless. They had known the risks, and he rationalized that if Stennon did attack him at least it would be painless as opposed to one of Cain's attacks. "-n attacks!"

The lights began to light up, stopping on Everest. Then went around again… yet again stopping on the Security Officer.

"Really now, I better have some good luck to balance this out." Everest sighed.

They went around a third time and landed on Tasha. Everest frowned as his monster shot a torrent of lava towards the Psychic-type Fusion monster, melting it down into nothing.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 3700 / Tasha: 5100 / Demetri: 100]**

"During the End Phase, Stennon loses his boost." Everest reminded everyone. [ATK: 4500 - 2700]

"I draw. I use Back to Square One, discarding one card to return Shinato to the hand. I set one monster and end my turn." Tasha said; glad to be rid of the angelic being. Now, if only she still had Ultimate Axon Kicker, she might have been able to deal the final blow.

All eyes turned towards Demetri, who after what appeared to be a great struggle, pulled himself into a sitting position.

"Draw. Monster Reborn, revive Greed Quasar. Summon Stygian Security." Demetri said quietly, swaying even though he was sitting.

A floating grey monster with a demonic face on its torso and no legs appeared, hovering in front of its weakened master. [ATK: ? - 2100] Next to it appeared a small purple demon with a red siren light on its head and a nightstick and megaphone in its hands. [ATK: 100]

"Tune Security to Greed Quasar…" Demetri said slowly, some power returning to his voice as he began his synchro chant. "Sadness, sorrow, anger and revenge feed the flames of my soul! From the blackest void, I call you forth! Synchro Summon! Rot, Blood Mefist!"

The top hat wearing fiend appeared in front of Demetri, chuckling softly as it twirled its cane that ended in a skull. [ATK: 2800]

"Attack!" Demetri cried.

The lights began to flash. They slowed down, and stopped on Cain. Everyone's faces lit up, but then the light shifted over one spot so it rested on Everest.

"Oh come on now!" Everest protested.

Blood Mefist reared its head back and then vomited forth acid, which melted Stennon much like it had melted Ultimate Axon Kicker.

**[Cain: 2800 / Everest: 3600 / Tasha: 5100 / Demetri: 100]**

"I set one and… end." Demetri finished.

"Draw." Cain began. As he did, Blood Mefist activated its ability. For every card Cain controlled, the Ritual duelist would take 300 points of damage. Even though he only controlled Roulette Field, any damage helped.

**[Cain: 2500 / Everest: 3600 / Tasha: 5100 / Demetri: 100]**

"Well, since you were kind enough to return it to my hand I may as well put it to use. I activate Trade-In and discard Shianto to draw two cards." Cain smirked. "Then, I activate Advanced Ritual Art, sending another Cosmo Queen from my deck to the graveyard to summon a new monster…"

"He's already gone through Demise, Shinato, Zorc… Garlandolf and Ruin are in his graveyard… what else can he have?" Everest wondered.

"The passage of time has only intensified your anger! Now, with this sacrifice you will rise again! Ritual Summon! Break the seal and return to this world! Reshef the Dark Being!" Cain chanted.

A large golden robot appeared in front of Cain. It had a blue orb connecting its left shoulder and left arm, a red one doing the same for the right arm, and a yellow orb connecting its upper and lower torso. Several golden columns also sprouted out of its back. [ATK: 2500]

"Reshef?" Everest wondered.

"Yes, Reshef. You could classify as one of the evil rulers, along with Garlandolf, Demise, Zorc and the like. But ironically enough, even though he is 'The Dark Being' he's a Light monster. Since we're talking about him, this would be a fantastic time to use his effect. By discarding a spell card from my hand, I gain control of one monster on my opponent's side of the field until the End Phase. I'll discard End of the World to take Blood Mefist." Cain said, taking in a deep breath after that explanation.

The three orbs of Reshef's body began to glow even brighter and slowly, Blood Mefist made its way towards Cain's side of the field.

"Now… let's see who survives this turn! Blood Mefist attacks!" Cain called. Both monsters pulsed with energy and everyone aside from Cain grimaced, knowing that what Cain meant about surviving just got serious.

The lights did what they'd been doing for the entire match, and as they seemed to have been doing very frequently, came to a stop on Everest. Blood Mefist vomited acid over the Security Officer, who fell to the ground cursing.

**[Cain: 2500 / Everest: 800 / Tasha: 5100 / Demetri: 100]**

"Now, Reshef!" Cain continued.

The lights began to turn and Tasha smiled as it began to settle on her, but her face fell when it moved over to Demetri.

"Let me guess. Your set card was A Deal with Dark Ruler. Well, maybe if you see him on the other side you can make a deal with him there." Cain chuckled, raising the Disappear card. Reshef fired off several multi-colored lasers, all of which curved towards Demetri and struck the Dark duelist, as well as causing a small explosion of energy. When it cleared, Demetri was gone.

**[Cain: 2500 / Everest: 800 / Tasha: 5100 / Demetri: 0]**

"Damn it…" Everest cursed as he got back onto his feet.

"Geez…" Travis muttered. Tasha merely covered her mouth.

"Well, since Blood Mefist has nowhere to return to… and no owner anymore, I suppose I'll just keep him." Cain chuckled. "Your move."

"Well… I ain't got any cards, so I can avoid your monster's acid for another turn." Everest grumbled. He stared at his hand for a moment before he noticed he was swaying. His body was still burning from Blood Mefist's acid. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, setting one card face-down. Suddenly, he felt a very familiar searing pain pass over his body. He opened his eyes just as Cain started laughing at him.

"Whenever my opponent sets a spell or trap card, Blood Mefist deals 300 points of damage to the opponent." Cain explained.

**[Cain: 2500 / Everest: 500 / Tasha: 5100 / Demetri: 0]**

"That's… all I got in me…" Everest said slowly.

"My turn." Tasha said. She soon knew the same pain Everest had felt, Blood Mefist's effect dealing 300 damage to her as well. She looked over her hand and decided that she could last long enough with her set Winda. "I end my turn."

**[Cain: 2500 / Everest: 500 / Tasha: 4800 / Demetri: 0]**

"Draw… oh man, this is too perfect! First, I activate Fulfillment of the Contract, paying 800 life points to bring back Dark Master – Zorc and equip it with this card!" Cain began.

**[Cain: 1700 / Everest: 500 / Tasha: 4800 / Demetri: 0]**

The Dark Master rose again, bellowing loudly as its sickly green energy began to sweep over the field. [ATK: 2800]

"Then… I remove Ruin, Queen of Oblivion and Demise, King of Armageddon from my graveyard." Cain continued.

"No… he couldn't be…" Travis whispered.

"Legendary warrior, raise your blade once more! The gates of chaos are open; now bring about the beginning of the end! Rise, Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning!" Cain called.

The retrained version of the legendary Black Luster Soldier appeared in front of the three other monsters. It's cold gaze swept across the field before settling on Tasha. [ATK: 3000]

"Now… you use Gustos, don't you? So your face-down monster is probably one of their recruiters. I won't be having any of that nonsense. I'll use Envoy of the Beginning's effect! In exchange for not attacking this turn, your monster is removed from the game!" Cain declared.

Black Luster Soldier pointed its sword towards the reversed card, which just… disappeared. Tasha was left defenseless.

"Hmm… looks like I win. Any combination of Zorc, Reshef and Mefist's attacks will end the two of you." Cain smiled.

"I'll activate Waboku, preventing me from taking any battle damage this turn!" Everest countered. "With any luck, I'll get picked for at least two attacks while I have this."

"Well, let's find out! Reshef attacks!" Cain began.

The lights stopped on the spot where Demetri had been standing. Then they spun around again and landed on Everest who grinned proudly.

"Oh, you shouldn't be grinning. You may not be taking any battle damage, but you'll still be taking damage from the actual attack." Cain smirked.

Reshef's lasers went off, hitting Everest and causing another small explosion, which sent the Security Officer into the back wall, where he slumped over.

"Blood Mefist is next!"

The wheel spun around, this time landing on Tasha. The Fiend-type monster vomited acid on Tasha, who persevered through the pain.

**[Cain: 1700 / Everest: 500 / Tasha: 2000 / Demetri: 0]**

"Now… Zorc!"

The lights flashed, and finally, they came to a stop on Tasha.

"NO!" Travis shouted, running to stand between Cain and Tasha. "I won't let you do this! Come on, let's go! We gotta run!" Travis shouted, starting to pull Tasha towards the door.

"You can disappear together then." Cain said flatly, raising Disappear once again.

Zorc howled and his sickly green energy surged, a wave of it coming up behind the retreating Tasha and Travis, wrapping around them and pulling them into the ground. Like the monsters that had been pulled down earlier with Zorc's effect, they too did not resurface.

**[Cain: 1700 / Everest: 500 / Tasha: 0 / Demetri: 0]**

"Well, since jumbo is just lying there, it looks like I'm the victor!" Cain laughed. Suddenly the Ritual duelist stumbled. "Gah… I've been using too much energy…" He muttered.

"N…o…"

"Eh? You still got some fight left in you?" Cain sighed. "Well, go ahead. There's not much you can do against a monster line-up like this anyway." Cain shrugged.

"Draw." Everest said, struggling to his feet. A small smile crossed his face. Cain gave him a questioning look, but Everest simply slipped a card into his duel disk. Flames formed in the room, consuming the entire field. Then, from them, appeared several monsters.

Two Magma Cannoneers stood next to each other, cannons ready to fire. [ATK: 1700] Then, next to them were two Laval Volcano Handmaidens, who simply smiled at Cain. [ATK: 100] The last was a lone Laval Forest Sprite, who sat quietly with her knees pulled up to her chest. [ATK: 300]

"…Rekindling." Cain said quietly, realizing what card his opponent had just played.

"This… this is my last stand. I tune the level one Handmaiden to the level four Cannoneer…" Everest said, choking over his words. "Warrior of the raging inferno, come forth and cut down every enemy who stands before you! Synchro Summon! Come forth, Laval Dual Slasher!"

The second Laval Synchro monster of the game appeared on the field, slicing through the air with the blades on its arms. [ATK: 2400]

"Then… I tune the other Handmaiden to the other Cannoneer…!" Everest continued, some strength returning to his voice. "The heat of battle calls forth this mighty beast, cry out and scorch the skyline with your unyielding flames! Synchro Summon! Burn, Lavalval Dragon!"

The volcanic dragon took to the sky, enjoying the flames that still ravaged the field. It shrieked loudly and began to descend to the ground, taking its place a small ways away from Laval Dual Slasher. [ATK: 2000]

"Then… I summon Laval Phlogis! Then I'll tune the level two Forest Sprite to the level four four Phlogis!" Everest continued. "Flames whose heat exceeds all known limits converge to call forth this new warrior! Your power will bring the light of a new dawn! Synchro Summon! Ignite, Laval the Greater!"

Another monster appeared briefly, but it was quickly cut down into four stars which entered the two synchro gates Forest Sprite created. Another Laval monster appeared, taking its place between Dual Slasher and Lavalval Dragon. It fixed Cain with a fierce glare as the blue flames on its body began to rise up higher. [ATK: 2400]

"Now… these guys aren't strong enough on their own… but you gotta remember what I sent to the graveyard. Right now, Forest Sprite an' Phlogis's effects activate! I have 11 Lavals in the graveyard, so all Laval monsters gain 2200 attack points! Then, since Phlogis was sent to the graveyard, they all gain 300 more!" Everest shouted, putting his last bit of energy into this.

The flames on the field began to rise even higher, and the Laval monsters all drew power from it. Dual Slasher roared loudly [ATK: 2400 - 4900] Lavalval Dragon shrieked [ATK: 2000 - 4500] and Laval the Greater stood perfectly still, but the blue flames on its body rose even higher, to the point where they almost touched the ceiling. [ATK: 2400 - 4900]

"Now, end this!" Everest roared, taking several steps towards Cain.

Lavalval Dragon unleashed a torrent of flames which surrounded Blood Mefist and burnt the Fiend-type monster into ashes. Laval the Greater simply raised a hand towards Cain's field and a wall of blue flames shot forward, striking both Zorc and Reshef and reducing them to nothing. Black Luster Soldier however, leapt into the air to avoid the wave. Dual Slasher jumped into the air after it, and the two slashed at each other simultaneously. The Envoy of the Beginning's broken sword fell to the ground, disintegrating slowly as Cain's life points dropped to 0.

**[Cain: 0 / Everest: 500 / Tasha: 0 / Demetri: 0]**

Kali's eyes flickered open, and she jumped to her feet seeing that the room was apparently on fire. But she calmed down slightly as she saw it was only a duel.

"Winning here means nothing… it's still all over for you!" Cain sneered raising the Disappear card. He pointed it towards Everest. Cain's eyes widened and he gasped. The card fell from his hand and the former King collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"You missed all the action… It's all over…" Everest smiled at Kali.

"Where's… everyone else?" Kali asked, looking around the room which was deserted aside from herself, Everest and Cain.

"He… he turned 'em to dust…" Everest answered.

"Even Michael?" Kali asked.

"No… I stopped him before he did that… but Travis, Tasha, Demetri… even that Mura guy you'd been playing against… all of 'em are gone…" Everest said quietly.

"You stopped him? Thank you… I'm a little surprised honestly; I didn't think someone from Security would help out a guy from Satellite." Kali admitted. She remained silent as she took in that Travis and Tasha were gone. "Where did he go then?"

"He went on to the top floor." Everest murmured.

"Well, let's go! Maybe we can help him out!" Kali said, starting towards the door. She heard a thud behind her and turned to see Everest kneeling down on one knee. "Are you okay…?"

"Heh… I'd… really love to go… after all… It's my job to help the people but… I'm burnt out." Everest said quietly.

"The duel took that much out of you?" Kali asked.

"I'm not as young… as you an' Michael… I can't just shrug off laser blasts an' having acid vomited on me. You jus' go on ahead… I'd only slow you down" Everest smiled.

"Will… will you be okay if I do?" Kali asked hesitantly.

"We'll just have to wait an' see now, won't we?" Everest murmured. "Now you go ahead. I know you'd rather be up there than down here. More of 'em could come at any minute. If things don't go well for that kid, than you wouldn't want to waste your time trying to help me when you could be helpin' him save the world, would ya? Take these with you and skedaddle."

"…Okay." Kali nodded. She moved towards the man and grabbed the two cards he held out to her. She glanced at them and then back at Everest, who nodded slowly. With that, she turned and ran out into the stairwell, leaving Everest with the unconscious Cain.

"Well… it's all in your hands now…" He whispered. With a quiet groan the Laval duelist fell onto his side, and closed his eyes.

* * *

><p>Roulette Field<p>

Field Spell

Assign each player a number between 1 and 6, with no duplicates. Whenever a monster declares, an attack, roll a dice. The monster attacks the player with the assigned number. If the number is invalid or the turn players number, the dice is re-rolled until a valid number is rolled.

* * *

><p>Still working on this. Just a note though: My schedule is kinda odd now. I'll be getting home around 7 35 days of the week and at 4 the other days. So you'll probably only see updates on weekends. Only reason this is being uploaded now is because of a long weekend. If I can squeeze in more than one a week, that'll be great but don't expect to see one until... probably Sunday or Monday.

That's all I gotta say on my schedule. This is another duel I really liked writing. Just sort of a boss rush of Ritual monsters. I hope you all enjoyed reading it, and I'll see you all next time!


End file.
